James Potter and the Auror of Hogwarts
by ColbiWest
Summary: Now in their third year at Hogwarts, James and his friends have more than ever to deal with. Extra classes, angry animals, and a brilliant new professor are only some of their new concerns, but not everything is centered around the school this time. With the Ministry's crime-fighting Auror Department handicapped, what will be the future of the war against Lord Voldemort?
1. An Afternoon in Diagon Alley

_Hey, everyone! This is the third installment of a series centered on the Marauders' Era of the Harry Potter universe, so if you want the whole story, I suggest you start with James Potter and the Sword of Gryffindor, which can be found on my profile page. If you just finished with James Potter and the Lost School, have fun reading this continuation!_

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 **An Afternoon in Diagon Alley**

Awakening when the sun broke through the slats covering his window and shined on his face, thirteen-year-old James Potter rolled over on his mattress and faced the opposite end of his room to stare at the neighboring bed's newest occupant. Still fast asleep, Sirius Black lay with his face pressed against his pillow, a bit of saliva dotting the corner of his mouth as his arm dangled limply over the edge of his bed. He looked incredibly peaceful, exhibiting a tranquility far unlike when James had first met him over the summer, and James decided to let him rest for a few more moments.

As James stared at the ceiling, his mind wandered back to their recent encounter. Nearly two months ago, Fleamont and Euphemia Potter had arranged to pick up Sirius to spend the summer with their son, and James had managed to convince them to let him come along. Although his mother had expressed hesitance at first due to the nefarious reputation of the Black family, his father had eventually persuaded her otherwise, saying that James had every right to see where his best friend lived. In the end, all three traveled from Godric's Hollow to Islington, using Floo powder as a pre-arranged transportation system between the two families' fireplaces. Since 12 Grimmauld Place resided in the middle of a Muggle apartment system, the residence was not visible to non-magical folk, and the Blacks did not desire unwanted attention from their Muggle neighbors by having their three visitors mysteriously vanish from the street.

Therefore, when James took his mother's hand and stepped into their fireplace, he emerged with her already inside of the Blacks' home, and he brushed himself of the stray soot before stepping out of the unlit hearth. Having used the Floo Network just before his wife and son, James' father stood a few paces away, facing a dreary-looking sofa from which a middle-aged man and woman rose to greet him. James could easily see the resemblance between the dark-haired couple and their son Sirius, but his friend did not seem to be anywhere in the near vicinity after a few seconds' examination.

Instead, his search revealed earthy wallpaper covering every square centimeter of the walls and ceiling, broken only by the small, bronze chandelier hanging in the center of the room. Although intended to bring light into the otherwise dark space, the chandelier did nothing more than to make the ceiling easier to see with its few points of light, which more closely resembled dying coals than actual flames. At the other end of the room, a lone doorway signaled the presence of a hallway leading further into the house, but James could not see past the closed entrance. Nothing of interest adorned the walls aside for a few scattered canvases, which displayed scowling wizards and witches who James assumed were old family ancestors of the Blacks. Casting a glance over his shoulder, James spotted a heavily-serrated, double-edged sword hanging over the fireplace that he had just walked out of, and he took a step closer before being pulled back by his mother's hand.

"You must be Sirius' parents!" she greeted the Blacks after depositing James next to his father. "I don't believe we've officially met."

After eyeing her up and down, Mrs. Black slowly took her raised hand and made no effort to fight the force curling her lip. When she spoke, her voice was much too loud for the solemn, enclosed space. "Walburga."

"Orion," Mr. Black introduced himself in a tone only slightly less clipped than his wife's. "Sirius should be down any minute."

"Thank you ever so much for letting us entertain him," James' father told the Blacks. "James has talked of nothing else since coming back from school, and Sirius always makes our house a little cheerier."

Now both Blacks turned to look down at James, and he felt a sudden sense of suffocation as if their eyes were holding him down for interrogation. Sirius' father looked almost bored, but Mrs. Black stared at him with an intensity he had never known before, and James had the sudden impression that he, like her strong voice, was strangely out of place in the dismal surroundings.

Thankfully, the soft padding of feet from beyond the door broke the spell, and everyone turned to watch as Regulus, the youngest of the Black family, opened the door and stepped into the room. Although he froze in place as if having accidentally stumbled upon the small party, James recognized the sort of satisfaction in his eyes that only comes after relieving one's curiosity. Oblivious to his son's calculated intrusion, Mr. Black beckoned him forward and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Regulus, you know James Potter, don't you?" he asked, and Regulus turned his pointed nose towards James. Although they had crossed paths several times during the last school year, James could not remember ever addressing Regulus directly, and he cleared his throat experimentally.

"Hullo," he greeted, trying on a welcoming smile, but Regulus only nodded curtly and looked away.

After this, an awkward pause drifted around the room until James' father finally cleared his throat. "How's work treating you?" he asked Mr. Black. "You're employed in the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol, isn't that right? The Safety Regulation Division?"

"Busy as usual," Mr. Black answered, not even bothering to acknowledge his question. "The amount of incompetence displayed by the wizarding community at large is quite astounding. What's your line of work? I don't recall having ever seen you in the Ministry."

"Oh, I haven't had to work in years," James' father replied. "I had a lucky break when I was still very young, after developing Sleekeazy's Hair Potion. You've heard of it, surely?" As Mr. Black's mouth twitched, James' father smiled reminiscently. "Those were the days . . . though I can say, one almost misses the daily grind."

Another heavy pause settled as he trailed off, during which Mr. and Mrs. Black regarded the significantly older Potter couple with a sort of disinterest. After James tried and failed to catch Regulus' eye again, Mrs. Black finally seemed to recollect her thoughts and turned to her guests.

"Will you be wanting tea, then?" she asked the Potters, her voice once again much too loud after the deafening silence.

"Tea would be lovely," James' mother agreed in a subdued voice; James suspected that she did not know how to politely decline.

"KREACHER!" Mrs. Black screeched, causing James and his parents to jump and set the chandelier to swinging. In a few moments, a wrinkled old house-elf had stuck his head drooping nose through the door leading to the hallway, his few strands of white hair quite unlike the snowy mop of the Potters' own house-elf, Winthrop.

"What does Mistress command of Kreacher?" the house-elf asked, his voice musty and parched despite his upturned ears.

"Get some tea for us and our guests," Mrs. Black snapped, and the house-elf bowed before exiting and closing the door. James' mother looked like she was regretting her decision to ask for tea, and Regulus fidgeted underneath his father's arm. No one seemed to want to be in the room, but no one looked comfortable with leaving, either. Finally, James turned to the Blacks.

"Where's Sirius?"

No one answered at first, but Mrs. Black eventually pressed her lips together. "He said something about a packing emergency nearly an hour ago. I suspect that he's in his room."

For a moment, James thought of asking to look for him, but he decided against it when he remembered how Mr. Black had scowled at him when he had caused the chandelier to teeter back and forth. Silently, James waited until Kreacher reappeared from the hallway, bearing two trays balanced in his hands. The house-elf approached the Potters first at a wave from Mr. Black, but he regarded them with narrowed eyes as they each accepted a cup of steaming black tea. Using a bit of his magic, Kreacher levitated two small pitches of milk and sugar from the tray, but he waddled away again when the Potters declined the offer. Of all the Blacks, only Walburga accepted a cup of tea from Kreacher, who responded with a giddiness which suggested that this reception was a rare one. Whispering animatedly to himself under his breath, he waddled towards the door just as the sound of pounding feet echoed from outside of the room, signaling someone's rapid descent down a staircase.

Turning their heads towards the door sharply at the loud interruption, Mr. and Mrs. Black watched as it burst open and slammed into the wall. Holding his suitcase in one hand and the door handle with the other, Sirius grinned at the sight of the Potters and released the breath that he had been holding.

"Someone could have told me that you had come!" he exclaimed, unfreezing and lugging his suitcase forward, almost knocking Kreacher over in his wake.

"Sirius, how many times do I have to tell you: we do not run down the stairs!" Mrs. Black snapped at him, but Sirius ignored her and plopped his suitcase down in front of James.

"Can we leave, then?" he asked James' parents, and they exchanged a quick glance.

"If you're ready," James' father agreed with a shrug. "Have you got everything you need?"

In reply, Sirius gave his suitcase a short, thudding kick. "I've packed my wand, three sets of robes, and enough snacks to last the whole year! I'll just need a trip to Diagon Alley for my books." Frowning, he stared at the bits of fabric protruding from his suitcase, signaling the rapid pace at which he had thrown his items inside. "Though I'm not sure where I'll manage to fit them."

Giving a short laugh, James' father clapped him on the shoulder. "I'm sure we'll figure something out. Say goodbye to your family now, and we'll be off!"

Facing his family, Sirius stared blankly at them for a moment. "Bye," he finally said; still put off by his sudden entrance, his parents only nodded.

"That's it?" James' father asked when Sirius had looked up at him again. "Aren't you going to hug your brother goodbye?"

Eyes widening, Sirius wrinkled his nose and shot a look at Regulus, who looked equally as horrified. "Of course not!" he exclaimed as he turned back to the Potters. "Why would I do a thing like that?"

At this, James' father quickly cleared his throat and addressed the Blacks one last time. "Thank you again for letting us look after Sirius. We'll have him safely at King's Cross in a month, and I'm sure that you can catch up then!"

Once again, the dark-haired couple glanced at Sirius, who had started tapping his foot as he stared at the fireplace. "I'm sure," Mr. Black replied, not sounding sure at all.

Herding James and Sirius into the empty fireplace, James' mother allowed them to make use of the Floo Network; a few seconds later, they had left the gloomy house behind and reappeared in Potter Cottage. There, it had not been more than a few minutes before Sirius pulled James close in their otherwise empty bedroom and retrieved a book from his suitcase.

" _Lycanthropy: The Complete Guide_ by Hophias Dingle?" James remembered asking, his heart leaping. After having discovered the previous year that one of their roommates at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was actually a werewolf, James, Sirius, and their remaining roommate had vowed to find a way to ease his painful transformations over the summer. "Where did you find it?" James inquired.

"I nicked it from one of my parents' bookshelves," Sirius answered with a smirk, wiping off a bit of dust from the book's corner. "I remembered it right before I had to leave, and I only just managed to fit it in. My parents will never miss it—I reckon we've had it for ages, and I don't think they've ever so much as looked at it."

"This is great!" James praised. "I'm sure that we'll find something in here to help Remus!"

"I haven't found anything about a cure yet," Sirius told him, "but I haven't even gotten through the second chapter." To emphasize his point, he picked up the hefty book and patted its cover firmly, drawing a surprisingly thick thumping sound from its bulk. "There's more to read in here than what McGonagall assigns to us in Transfiguration, and it's hard to understand most of the time."

"Then we'd better get to it," James suggested, and they opened to where Sirius had last left off.

Throughout the next week, the two boys had poured over the old volume, but as Sirius had said, they found little in the vein of treatments or possible cures. In fact, for knowing so much about lycanthropy, Hophias Dingle seemed to hold a rather negative if not inflammatory view of werewolves, and James wondered if he had ever in fact met one.

As James now studied the sleeping form of Sirius, he opened _Lycanthropy: The Complete Guide_ once again to go over what they had already learned. Supposedly, werewolves posed little to no danger towards animals, but they attacked humans without reason during the full moon and even earned the classification of XXXXX in the Ministry Classification of Magical Creatures, which was the highest and most dangerous class. In the margins of the second chapter, Sirius had written down some notes next to a few sentences that he had circled in the text:

 _Silver and dittany used to close wounds caused by werewolves—can be used as cure? Ask Professor Slughorn about potion._

Caught up in his reading, James did not hear footsteps coming down the hall until Winthrop the house-elf had already opened the door to his bedroom. Snapping the book shut, James shoved it underneath his pillow as Winthrop entered and eyed him with a frown, his arms crossed.

"Master James and his friend Mr. Black have slept past eleven, and Mistress Euphemia will not allow it any longer. Diagon Alley is waiting, and Master still has to get his books."

"Right!" James answered a little too hurriedly. "Thanks, Winthrop!"

His frown deepening, Winthrop raised one of his white, bushy eyebrows. "Did Master hide Master Fleamont's handkerchief in the icebox again?"

"No, of course not," James replied, sliding off his bed and grabbing his round-lensed glasses. "Why would you think that?"

"Because Winthrop found it there."

Across the room, Sirius awoke and waved his dangling arm as if brushing off a fly. "Be quiet," he groaned, his voice muffled from his pillow. "It's not morning yet."

"It's past eleven, Sirius," James corrected him.

"At least wait two more hours," Sirius mumbled, and Winthrop waddled out of the room to avoid seeing James whip out his friend's pillow from underneath him.

"Get up! We're going to see Remus and Peter today!" James exclaimed, ripping off Sirius' comforter as well. As Sirius grunted and slowly sat up, James added, "By the way, did you put my dad's handkerchief in the icebox?"

Suddenly wide awake, Sirius gaped at him. "I thought that was yours!"

"Mine isn't nearly that frilly," James said reprovingly, throwing the pillow at him. "Besides, our initials are different."

"Well, the 'F' looked an awful lot like a 'J,'" Sirius retorted, catching the pillow and stuffing it under his head again.

When James finally managed to drag him out of bed, the two of them ate and joined James' parents in front of the fireplace, this time to travel to the Leaky Cauldron on Charing Cross Road. In the alley behind the small pub, they entered Diagon Alley by opening a hidden entrance in the brick wall that cut it off from the Muggle world.

"We're a little late," James' mother said, looking around the clusters of busy stalls and shops. "The other families should already be—"

She did not have time to finish, because Remus and Peter had walked out of a nearby supply store and ran across the street in front of their parents, waving and calling out their friends' names. They made it across the road in a matter of seconds, and their families hurried to catch up behind them.

"You made it!" Remus exclaimed when he and Peter had skidded to a halt in front of the Potters. "We've already been in half the stores."

"The Apothecary has a sale on knotgrass right now," Peter told James and Sirius, struggling to balance several small packages in his arms. "We've just been stocking up for Potions."

Joining their son at last, Mr. and Mrs. Lupin halted beside Peter's mother; Mr. Lupin, a fair-haired wizard with a beaming smile, was the first to extend his hand.

"I'm Lyall. Hope is my wife, and we just met Marjorie near a half-hour ago."

Taking Mr. Lupin's hand, James' father smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you. You can call me Fleamont, but I'd prefer it if you didn't."

"Call him whatever you like," James' mother cut in, shaking her head. "I mostly call him a fool, but you can be creative. I'm Euphemia, by the way."

"I'm afraid that we did some of the shopping without you," Mrs. Lupin reported with a sheepish smile. "Marjorie didn't want to wait, and the rest of us were only too willing to give in."

"No use waiting while there's shopping to be done, I always say," Mrs. Pettigrew spoke up, her flower-patterned dress jiggling as she adjusted some of the bags draped over her shoulder. Turning to Peter, she patted him on the shoulder and handed him another package. "Here, take this, will you? There's a wee dear." Fumbling with the box as he stumbled under the extra weight, Peter received an affectionate pat on the head from his mother as she turned back to James' parents. "So, shall we be off? Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment isn't going to stay open all day!"

"Sounds wonderful!" James' mother agreed, smiling. "We'll start there. Fleamont," she added, turning to her husband, "can you run down to Gringotts and grab a few more Galleons from our vault? I could use the extra money on hand."

"Of course," he replied, reaching into his robes' pocket to examine his coin purse. As Mr. Lupin stepped forward to join the women, Mrs. Pettigrew held up a hand to stop him.

"You can't join us!" she announced. "This is a girls' outing!"

Throwing her head back to laugh, Mrs. Lupin turned to her husband. "She's right, you know. You can look after the boys in the meantime. But Remus," she added, lowering her voice and placing a few bronze Knuts into her son's palm, "can you run down to the Junk Shop and look around? You might be able to find a few quills there still in decent shape."

Although quickly reddening around the ears, Remus nevertheless took the coins and glanced at his friends before dragging his feet down the street. Turning away, Mrs. Pettigrew led the way towards Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment, and the other women struck up an amiable conversation.

"Come on, boys, Lyall," James' father beckoned, turning towards Gringotts Wizarding Bank. "You're sure to find some shops that interest you along the way."

As they followed the adults, James and his friends fell back a little way to talk amongst themselves. "Have you done any research on werewolves?" James asked Peter, and the smaller boy shrugged and stuffed his hands into his pockets.

"Not a lot," he replied. "The bookstore a few blocks away from our house didn't have anything about them, and I was too nervous to ask my mum if I could go to Diagon Alley before meeting the rest of you."

"We've had better luck than you," Sirius announced, too eager to proclaim the news to reproach him. "My parents have a book about werewolves that I stole from my house, and it has everything there is to know about lycanthropy!"

"Really?" Peter asked, brightening. "Did you find a cure?"

"Well . . . no," Sirius replied, calming somewhat from his original excitement, "but you can't have everything, can you? It's sure to come eventually."

"The book said that silver and dittany can be used to close werewolf bites," James supplied helpfully. "Maybe those can be used to make a potion that can help Remus."

"Do you think so?" Peter questioned.

"We won't know for certain how much of a challenge it will be until we ask Professor Slughorn about making one," James told him, "but I'm sure that either he or Professor Sprout will be able to help us."

"Won't they get suspicious if we ask for help?" Peter pointed out.

"We've thought of that," Sirius replied. "We'll just tell them that we're working on a research assignment. After all, I'm sure that we'll be learning a lot about werewolves in Care of Magical Creatures this year."

"I'm just a little disappointed that we haven't found anything yet," James admitted, sighing. "We don't have anything to show Remus yet."

"Yeah," Sirius agreed, kicking at a rock on the street. "I wish there was something we could do right away, but there's no use telling him about our plan before we know that it'll work. Besides, he won't like us trying to research a cure behind his back, even though it's for his own good. I really don't understand him sometimes."

"We could always buy him something to cheer him up," Peter suggested, balancing his armload of packages precariously.

"That's a great idea!" James agreed, looking around at the nearby shops. "But what should we get him?"

"We could look in Sugarplum's Sweets Shop," Sirius interjected, nodding towards the brightly-colored storefront on the other side of the street. "He's always happy to get chocolate."

"I don't know," James hesitated, frowning. "It just doesn't seem special enough."

"Let's look around anyway," Sirius said, stopping, and he waved ahead to Remus' father. "Mr. Lupin! We want to stop here!"

Hearing his call, Mr. Lupin turned and walked back towards the boys as Sirius and Peter headed for Sugarplum's. Just before James could follow, however, the older wizard stopped him with a question. "You're James, right?"

"That's me!" James answered. Smiling, Mr. Lupin looked over both shoulders before leaning closer to him.

"Remus has told Hope and me all about you," he said, "and I must say that I'm grateful for your friendship. He never really had any close friends until going to Hogwarts, and I can tell that he's happy by the way he talks about you."

Nodding, James stepped preemptively in the direction of Sugarplum's, but Mr. Lupin threw another glance over his shoulder and continued eagerly, "And then just this summer he told us that you and the others—well, _found out_ about him, and—" Breaking off, he took in a breath and smiled. "And he told us what you said to him. You're a remarkable young man, James, and I'm truly grateful for your selflessness. Our family owes you a great deal."

"It's no problem," James assured him, no longer attempting to follow his friends. "It's not like I would rat him out after two years of being his roommate, after all. He's not a bad sort, once you get to know him."

Laughing, Mr. Lupin rose to his full height and shook his head. "No, he really isn't! I can't take the credit for that, though—his mother did most of the work." Growing serious, he asked, "You haven't told your parents about his . . . condition, have you?"

When James shook his head, Mr. Lupin regarded him with a sparkle in his eyes, a small smile creeping across his face. "I can't say that I've ever met anyone quite like you, James. Again, I must thank you, but I should request that you continue to keep it a secret. I'm sure that your parents are trustworthy people, but perhaps it's for the best that they never know."

Once James had nodded in understanding, Mr. Lupin gestured to a street stall on the other side of the street, manned by a witch in a tall, pointed hat. "If you boys are looking around, I think I'll stop here and see if I can find any cleaning supplies. We're running low on Winchum Crockett's Elbow Grease."

Leaving James in the middle of the street, he walked off to talk with the hatted witch just as Sirius and Peter reemerged from Sugarplum's Sweets Shop. "Nothing really caught our fancy," Sirius told James with a shrug when they halted in front of him. "I guess you were right."

Glancing around the street, James skimmed over the shop signs until his eyes stopped on one of the larger stores. "How about the Magical Menagerie?" he suggested, pointing at the open windows displaying a cage filled with colorful Puffskeins. "Remus doesn't have a pet, does he?"

Curiosity piqued, Sirius and Peter followed him into the shop, where they were immediately hailed by bustling activity. Just to the right of the door, a few crows sat together on a single perch, eyeing the boys with their beady eyes while they emitted a few loud squawks. Crawling over each other, the Puffskeins strained to climb to the top of their cage, and a ginger cat just below the counter growled deeply, attempting to snatch a bright orange toad from a bowl.

Head jerking upright at the sound of the door, the sales-witch behind the counter knocked her head against a cage of chirping finches, all of which started popping loudly as they disappeared and reappeared inside the confines of their prison. "Looking for anything in particular, lads?"

"Just browsing," James answered, walking around the room slowly. Peering into a nearby glass case, he watched as a striped iguana stuck out its tongue and swelled to twice its size.

"We've got birds, lizards, snakes, cats, rats, and supplies for all of them!" the witch told the boys, waddling out from behind her desk as Sirius and Peter began to scan the room. "We even received a large rainbow snake two weeks ago, and we're giving it to a good home for only ten Galleons! Whoops!" she grunted as she knocked against a wicker basket next to the desk, spilling its contents of several spiky, bush-like plants; grumbling under her breath, she pulled out her wand to repair the damage.

Spotting a clump of dirty gray fur in the corner behind the counter, James slipped around the witch to get a better look. At first, he thought one of the cats had left behind a hairball, but then the tiny lump of hair moved, revealing a pink mouth and two rows of pin-like teeth as it yawned widely. When it again dropped off into a heavy doze, James turned and tugged on the storeowner's sleeve.

"How much is that one?" he asked, pointing at the pile of fur.

Spinning around, the witch picked up the gray ball and shook it out, revealing the four tiny legs and triangular head of a kitten. Eyes still closed, the kitten hung limply in her grasp, moving its feet feebly in its sleep.

"This?" the storeowner sniffed. "She's the last of her litter—the rest all went a month ago. I'd put her at six Galleons, at most."

"We'll take it," James told her earnestly, and she shrugged.

"If you say so," she replied, and the boys quickly turned to each other and split the cost.

In a few minutes, James had slipped the tiny kitten into the pocket of his robes, and he exited the shop with the others and joined Mr. Lupin in front of the cleaning-supply stall, where he had just completed his purchase.

"Found everything you were looking for?" he asked them, and they nodded. "We'd better join the ladies at Wiseacre's, then. Fleamont's already on his way."

Together they started off down the North Side of Diagon Alley, reaching Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment just as the other adults walked out of the store along with Remus, who had evidently returned from his errand. Taking a few packages from his wife's arms, Mr. Lupin told her, "I found an excellent deal on cleaning supplies just down the road. I nearly bought out the stall for a fraction of what we normally pay."

"I'll bet that you didn't find anything as good as we did," Mrs. Pettigrew commented with a beam. "I haven't seen such a great sale on cauldron ladles since 1956." Staring up at the drifting clouds, she sighed fondly. "That was a good year."

"Remus, we have a surprise for you!" James announced to his friend, unable to wait any longer.

Speechless, Remus watched as James grabbed the fluffy, gray kitten by the scruff of its neck and plopped it down onto an empty rack in front of Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment. Giving its tiny head a shake as if shocked to find itself on all four feet, the kitten opened its pale, yellow eyes and took one look at Remus; arching its back, it hissed as loudly as its tiny lungs allowed and jumped down from the rack, racing towards James' father. In just two bounds, it had climbed all the way onto his shoulder, where it stood quivering with fear and indignation, and everyone except Remus began to laugh.

"It's precious!" Mrs. Lupin exclaimed, prying out the kitten's claws from James' father and causing a few strands to come free from his robes. Cradling the kitten in her arms, she asked, "What's its name?"

"She doesn't have one yet," James told her.

"What do you think, Remus?" she questioned her son, holding out the drab bundle of fur. "Do you want to take her?"

Biting his lip, Remus backed away. "I'm not sure that's a good idea."

Executing another small hiss, the kitten buried its head in the crook of Mrs. Lupin's arm as she continued to rock it. "You can at least name her," she pleaded with her son.

"Maybe you should," he suggested, still looking hurt.

After thinking for a few moments, Mrs. Lupin looked down at the kitten and smiled. "I think her name should be Mussmug."

"It's perfect!" Mr. Lupin agreed, and he patted Remus on the shoulder while addressing him. "I'll buy some food for her while we're here, and she can come home with us while you visit the Potters. Is that all right?"

Nodding without a word, Remus stared warily at Mussmug as his parents exchanged handshakes with the other adults. "We're about wrapped up here," Mrs. Lupin told the other families. "It was a pleasure to meet you! We'll come pick up Remus in another three weeks."

"I still don't understand why he can't stay for the entire month," James' mother argued. "Peter's staying with us until they go back to Hogwarts."

"Remus still has some packing to do," Mr. Lupin told her, but James shared a knowing glance with the other boys. "Don't worry: he'll be back with the others in no time."

"I'd better be going as well," Mrs. Pettigrew announced, turning to Peter and taking a few packages from his arms. "You treat the Potters kindly now, you understand?"

"Yes, Mum," Peter responded, grateful for his lessened load.

"Your children are in safe hands," James' father told the others, taking Peter and Remus by the shoulders. "We'll make sure that James doesn't have any negative influence on them."

"You should be worried about Sirius, not me!" James protested, earning a kick from Sirius and scattered laughter from the parents.

After saying goodbye to their children, Mrs. Pettigrew and the Lupins walked further down Diagon Alley while James, his parents, and the other boys started for the Leaky Cauldron. As they ambled down the street, James and his friends fell behind his parents so that they would not be overheard.

"I think I'm starting to like that cat!" Sirius laughed, looking back at Mr. and Mrs. Lupin as they headed down the street. Nudging Remus, he added, "I'm sure that Mussmug will warm up to you eventually."

Averting his eyes, Remus opened his mouth to speak, but James beat him to it. "We thought that Mussmug would help take your mind off things whenever the full moon comes. In fact, maybe it would help if—"

Taking in a large breath, Remus glanced at the others and interrupted him. "You still aren't looking for a way to cure me, are you?"

After shooting a quick glance at one another, James, Sirius and Peter immediately shook their heads. "Of course not!" they exclaimed as one, and Remus narrowed his eyes.

"Look," he told them firmly, "I appreciate what you're trying to do about the whole werewolf thing, but there's no way to ignore what I am. You have to face it: there's nothing you can do for me. If thousands of talented wizards over the centuries haven't found a cure, there's no chance that three schoolboys are going to succeed. I really appreciate your efforts, but you shouldn't get your hopes up. Maybe it's best if you just forgot about it."

"Forgot about it?" James questioned, gaping.

"At least for now," Remus told him. "We can let things go back to how they used to be, before you knew that I was a werewolf. It's not that bad, honestly; at least, I'm used to it. There's just no point in hoping for something that's never going to happen."

"Remus, we could never forget about you," James told him, but he shared a disheartened look with Sirius and Peter. Although he had not wanted to admit it, he had begun to doubt the usefulness of Hophias Dingle's book after going through the first few chapters with Sirius. Even though Dingle seemed to know a lot about werewolves, he had not yet mentioned anything about possible cures or other healing processes, and his obvious prejudice against his subject matter suggested that he never would. Still, James was resistant at the thought of giving up so easily, and he resolved to look through the rest of the book without Remus' knowledge.

To Remus, however, he said, "Okay, you're right. We won't get our hopes up." When Sirius and Peter both gave him a sharp glance, he shook his head and winked at them, making sure that Remus would not see.

"Good, then it's settled," Remus replied with a sigh. "Let's not bring it up again, all right? I don't want anyone to overhear."

Nodding, James, Sirius, and Peter shared another look as they exited Diagon Alley behind James' parents. When Remus walked ahead of them, Peter opened his mouth to speak to James, but Sirius gave him a hard nudge in the stomach to stop him. Raising his finger to his lips, James motioned for Peter to stay quiet until they could talk in a more private setting, and Peter seemed to understand enough of his friends' objections to remain silent as they entered the Leaky Cauldron.


	2. The Auror Department

**The Auror Department**

During the next three weeks, James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter spent their time exploring Godric's Hollow, whether playing out in James' yard, walking down to the local park, or stopping at Oldeman's Candy Store. During their last two years at Hogwarts, most of their free time had been eaten up by homework, and James was grateful for their lack of responsibilities during the final, dwindling days of summer. His parents had taken to Remus and Peter immediately, and they treated them just like they would their own son, making jokes with them at home and treating them to sweets while in town. Similarly, Remus and Peter appeared to be enjoying their time at Potter Cottage, which, like most wizarding homes, was much larger on the inside than the front façade suggested. Several times throughout their visit, the two of them would stop and marvel about different details of the house; Winthrop in particular sparked a great deal of interest, seeing as how neither the Lupins or Pettigrews had ever owned house-elves.

"Does he mind it?" Remus asked at one point, watching as Winthrop exited the room with a load of dirty dishes in his arms.

"Mind what?" James questioned.

"Cleaning up after you," Remus clarified. "Do you pay him?"

"Of course not!" James answered, and Sirius gave a bark-like laugh.

"Why on earth would you do a thing like that?" Sirius questioned, grinning at the absurdity of the suggestion.

Now it was Remus' turn to be startled. "But why does he stay, then? Can't he leave?"

"Not unless we free him or tell him to," James replied.

"You mean he's a slave?" Remus gasped, his mouth falling open.

"He's a _house-elf_ ," Sirius corrected. "Haven't you ever heard of them before?"

"Well, yes," Remus defended, "but I never realized that they couldn't leave the house."

"I knew that," Peter piped up. "I don't think they mind, though. I mean, they're not used to anything else, are they?"

"But don't you think that they want to live on their own?" Remus asked, glancing towards where Winthrop had disappeared. "How would they earn their freedom, anyway?"

"By receiving a piece of clothing," Sirius answered.

Turning to stare at him, Remus blinked. "That's the silliest thing I've ever heard."

"Kind of melodramatic, isn't it?" James agreed, laughing, but he shook his head. "It's all right, Remus: Winthrop doesn't mind. House-elves like to serve. The same one will live for hundreds of years in the same family and never leave them. It's in their blood."

Although he did not answer, Remus grew thoughtful whenever Winthrop walked into the room after their conversation, giving him a smile and treating him with just a bit more kindness than before. Three days later at the dinner table, Remus had tried and failed to pour his own tea in Winthrop's stead just before James' father made a throaty grunt while overlooking _The Daily Prophet_.

"What is it, Fleamont?" James' mother questioned, reading her husband's signs of displeasure.

"Oh, Eugenia Jenkins is at it again," James' father answered with a sigh, bringing up the Minister of Magic. "She's made an appeal to take away the administrative powers of the Aurors."

"The what?" Peter asked, tilting his head as he paused mid-chew.

"The Aurors," James' father replied, rustling the newspaper as he turned the page. "A group of wizards and witches that track down users of the Dark Arts. Jenkins is trying to make them answerable solely to the Wizengamot."

"Isn't it already?" James asked. He knew that the Wizengamot, Great Britain's highest wizarding court of law, controlled nearly every aspect of the Ministry of Magic.

"Not entirely," his father told him. "It has a self-governing body of its own, which can make decisions on a smaller scale. What Jenkins wants to do is make the Auror Department fully answerable to the Wizengamot, rendering it helpless to act swiftly in the case of an emergency."

"Why would she want to do that?" Sirius inquired.

"It gives her a feeling of control. Even though she isn't on the Wizengamot herself, Jenkins still has the power to influence the court—too much, if you ask me. But we can't risk hurting the Auror Department, not at a time like this."

Nodding knowingly, James thought about the recent rise of the Dark wizard Lord Voldemort and his band of fanatical followers, the Death Eaters.

"Won't the Wizengamot vote with her?" Remus asked. "Don't they want to be in control of the Aurors as well?"

"Not if they know what's best for the country," James' mother answered, and her husband nodded.

"It'll never go through, not while Albus Dumbledore is the Wizengamot's Chief Warlock. He'll convince the members otherwise."

"That's right," James' mother agreed. "Jenkins isn't the first Minister who's tried to lessen the Aurors' power, and Dumbledore has stopped them every time."

"He has far too much sway in the court, seeing all that he's done for the Ministry in the past, and he understands the dangers of a weak response unit," James' father said. "Jenkins doesn't realize she's just wasting her time."

"Was Dumbledore ever an Auror?" James asked, fully expecting the answer to be in the affirmative. After all, it was Dumbledore who put the Dark wizard Gellert Grindewald behind bars in 1945, outperforming him in a duel and earning the prestigious Order of Merlin, First Class.

"No, he never was," his father answered. "It's rather surprising, isn't it? And yet I say that he probably knows more combative magic and Preservation Charms than any Auror in the history of the Department. He's even been offered the title of Minister several times, but he's always refused, saying that he prefers his position as Headmaster of Hogwarts."

"You mean he turned down becoming Minister to work at Hogwarts?" Sirius demanded.

"Yes, and don't you take him for granted," James' father instructed, shaking his finger at the boys. "He's done you all a great service with his sacrifice. I can't imagine anyone more equipped for the job as Headmaster than our own Dumbledore."

After the meal, the boys excused themselves from the table and ran up to James' bedroom, where Sirius gestured for the others to listen while he closed the door. "I nearly forgot to tell you, but talking about the Auror Department reminded me: Malfoy is still visiting my cousin Narcissa."

"What?" all three of the others exclaimed at once.

"But I thought everyone would know that he was a Death Eater after he ran from the Forbidden Forest last year!" Remus protested. "How come he hasn't been arrested?"

"Narcissa's family is like my parents: they think that Lord Voldemort has the right idea with ruling over the Muggles and all that," Sirius explained. "There's no way that they're going to call the Aurors and turn Malfoy in. I only found out about him when Narcissa visited with my aunt and mentioned him. She wouldn't tell me anything else when I started asking her about him, but I could tell that they had seen each other recently. I bet her family is thrilled about it: all they want is for her to marry a pureblood like her sister Bellatrix did."

"What did they do when Andromeda ran off with that Muggle-born, then?" James inquired.

"You mean Ted Tonks?" Sirius asked. "They were furious, of course. They did the same thing my mother did: disowned Andromeda and blasted her name off of our family tapestry. No one's allowed to see her again."

"Have you heard from her?" Peter asked.

"A couple of times," Sirius admitted, and he grinned. "She's pregnant now."

"Really?" Remus asked.

"It's great, isn't it?" Sirius said. "Andromeda's been sending me owls every few months, and I've been telling my parents that they were from Uncle Alphard to keep them from confiscating the letters. Apparently, she and Ted bought a house in some small Muggle town, so her family will have a hard time finding them if they ever cared to try. It's about the safest place they can be right now," he added, and the others nodded, their thoughts returning to the dinnertime conversation.

Eventually, as the week continued, Remus' parents stopped by Potter Cottage to pick up their son, signaling both the advance of the full moon and the start of term. The other boys bid him a heartfelt farewell, but they quickly turned to other matters as soon as he had left. They began to read through _Lycanthropy: The Complete Guide_ whenever James' parents were not in the room, going as quickly as the book's complex language would allow. By studying each new chapter under their covers at night, they managed to finish half of the book by the time the start of term arrived, but they had failed to find anything about a possible cure. At this point, James knew that his friends were both thinking what none of them wanted to say out loud: _What if we don't find anything?_

On the way to King's Cross Station, James reviewed what they had learned from Hophias Dingle's book in his head, bringing to mind a few of the passages while his parents, Sirius, and Peter talked about the coming year:

 _Werewolves cannot and should not be tamed, reasoned with, or approached during the duration of the full moon . . . Although they retain faint memories of their transformations after returning to their human forms, they cannot control themselves during their mutations . . . There has been no record of a werewolf harming any other living thing besides a human during the full moon, but they pose an immediate threat to any wizard, witch, or Muggle standing nearby. Most non-magical folk die upon receiving werewolf bites, and although wizards and witches having a better chance of survival, many have begged for death instead . . ._

Feeling a slight tingle ripple across his spine, James watched his friends with unseeing eyes and recalled Dingle's recurring admonition to the reader: _If you ever have the misfortune to meet a werewolf at the full moon,_ do not engage. _Your best chance is to keep hidden until it is safe to find experienced reinforcements, after which you can bring the creature down with a few well-placed Stunning Spells._

"James?" Sirius suddenly spoke up, causing his friend to jump. "Are you all right there, mate?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," James answered him. "Sorry, did you ask me something?"

"No, it just looks like you saw the Grim or something, that's all," he replied, and the others stared at James with questioning eyes.

"Sorry. I'm just tired, I guess," James told them, brushing his hand through his hair.

"You haven't caught whatever your friend had, have you?" his mother inquired as her brow creased.

"What?"

"Remus seemed a bit peaky before he left," she explained. "He might have passed it on to one of you if you weren't careful."

"What? No, I'm fine, Mum!" James stammered as Sirius and Peter shared a look. "None of us are ill!"

Pressing her lips together, James' mother gave him a sidelong look while the Muggle train drew to a stop; springing to life, the boys vaulted for the exit, and James' parents called out for them to slow down as they hurried after them. Soon enough, the small group had walked down to King's Cross Station together, where they passed through the metal wall leading to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Once they arrived, they waited for Remus and his family in front of the Hogwarts Express, where no passing Muggle could question their strange attire or the presence of Hardwin, James' screech owl. After a few minutes, however, it was the appearance of the Blacks that caught their attention, the dark-eyed family having just entered the bustling platform from behind them.

"Orion!" James' father greeted with a wave, and Sirius crossed his arms and looked away as his family approached them. "How was the journey? Not too tiresome, I hope?"

"Just as dreary as always," Mr. Black told him with a near-sigh.

"Is that so? We took the Underground ourselves, which I always find a refreshing change from the usual speed and discomfort of traveling," James' father replied, and the Blacks recoiled as quickly as Mussmug had when first meeting Remus.

"Well, I'll be!" Mrs. Black gasped loudly, and Mr. Black grabbed Regulus' shoulder and pulled him away.

"This way, son," he beckoned, and Regulus gave Sirius a dark glance before disappearing in the crowd with his parents. Blinking, James' parents looked at each other and then at the boys.

"Did I say something wrong?" James' father asked Sirius, who was still refusing to watch his family's rapid retreat.

Before James' parents could press him again, they were cut off by the greetings of Mr. and Mrs. Lupin from the farther down the platform. Following his parents, Remus held out Mussmug's cage at arm's length while he lugged his suitcase behind him.

"Sorry we're late," Remus exhaled, sounding as if he had just been holding his breath, and he set the cage on top of his suitcase gingerly before stepping back. Inside, Mussmug stared at him with her wide, yellow eyes, her fur standing on end. Rubbing his hands together as he glanced at his pet and gulped, Remus asked the others, "Should we go, then?"

Having already forgotten about his family, Sirius looked as if he might start laughing, but James' mother spoke up before anyone could answer. "We don't want to keep you waiting," she told the boys, and she tried to hug James only to correct herself and give him a quick pat on his shoulder when he shied away. "Have a good year, James!"

"We'll see you and Sirius at Christmastime!" his father added before addressing both the Lupins and Peter. "We'd love to have all of you, if you can make it! Let's see if we can work it out before the holidays."

Giving him an understanding nod, Mrs. Lupin bent down to hug Remus. "We'll write often," she promised.

"Study well, son," Mr. Lupin interjected, rubbing him on the head. After Remus broke away, he carefully lifted Mussmug's cage again and walked with James and the other boys through the crowded platform.

Hopping into a car near the front of the scarlet train, James searched for his roommates' usual compartment and opened the sliding door. To his surprise, he found it already occupied by a wizard in a bright yellow tie conversing agitatedly with his pocket-watch. Glancing up briefly as the boys entered and took their seats, the wizard tugged at his tie and continued talking animatedly into the glass face of his watch, ignoring the hissing and hooting of Mussmug and Hardwin as their owners hoisted their cages onto the racks overhead.

"No, I fink I made meself quite clear two monfs ago, and I 'asn't changed me mind," the man nearly yelled into the minute-hand before pausing and putting his ear to the watch as if listening for a response. After a moment, he shook his long-hanging hair out of his eyes and addressed the watch again. "Don't start tha' again—you've 'ad enough time to fink abou' it. . . . If it weren't for me trade contract? If it weren't for your bloomin' arguin', we would 'ave 'ad dis sor'ed weeks ago!"

Again he paused, and James shared a glance with the others as the man continued to talk in short bursts. "Late, me bot'le, you 'asn't made one solid promise during dis 'ole exchange! . . . . More porkies is all it is. . . . Listen, chap, I won't 'ave it! If you skive off the dosh once more, I'm closin' our deal. Let me give you a lump of ice: if you really wan' to buy a shop, find anover bloke that'll let you 'ave it yet!"

Snapping the watch shut as a sort of ultimatum, he stuffed it into his pocket and turned to face the boys sitting on the opposite side of the compartment. "'Ello," he greeted, all trace of irritation gone. They all nodded back at him silently, James having the distinct feeling that the yellow-tied wizard had ruined all chances of a normal conversation.

Unconcerned by their silence, the man pulled out a small, leather-bound book from his pocket and began reading, holding it away from his body and squinting to see the words. After exchanging glances, James and the others sat quietly back in their seats and stared out of the window while the scenery rushed by. Nearly an hour passed in uninterrupted stillness, broken only by the occasional rustling of a page made by the reading wizard, but a rapid buzzing eventually interrupted the silence. Lunging for his pocket, the wizard retrieved his pocket-watch and put his ear to its shining face.

"Wha'?" he exclaimed, bouncing on his seat. "Yes, I did, bu' I didn't fink 'e'd actually back out!" Cursing under his breath, he pulled his face away from the pocket-watch and studied the time. "Jus' forget abou' it: it's probably bet'er dis way. I'll jus' 'ave to find anover buyer—dis time one 'oo pays."

Standing up abruptly, he whisked out of the compartment and left the boys listening to the steady chugging of the train's wheels. Once satisfied that the man had gone, James moved to the other side of the cabin, allowing himself enough room to stretch his limbs. Letting out a relieved sigh, Sirius moved to join him as Peter studied the door.

"I don't think I've ever seen him before," Peter commented. "Do you think that he's a professor?"

"He certainly isn't dressed like one," Sirius pointed out, snorting.

"I don't think he's a professor," Remus disagreed. "He seemed more like a businessman to me, although he was a little rough. Maybe he's taking the train to Hogsmeade; he was trying to sell a shop, remember?"

Uninterested, James settled down for the long trip to Hogwarts while Sirius crossed his arms and joined Mussmug for a nap. Before long, Remus and Peter had fallen asleep as well, and James was left to gaze out the window by himself, listening to the gentle snores of the others. After a while, his eyes began to droop with the monotony of the journey, and he finally succumbed to the darkness of sleep before jolting awake several hours later with a crick in his neck. The train had begun to slow, and he glanced out of the window just in time to spot the distant silhouette of the Hogwarts castle before it disappeared behind a line of trees. Another bump nearly catapulted Peter from his seat, and the others stirred until they were all pressed against the window to examine the castle's barely-visible spires.

"I swear that it gets bigger every year," Sirius voiced before they all began to gather their items. When he reached for Mussmug's carrier, Remus jumped slightly as the kitten awoke and snarled at him through the bars, but he braved the threatening hisses long enough to exit the Hogwarts Express behind the others.

The boys all boarded the same horseless carriage, which, after a rough ride over a dirt path, brought them to the entrance of the Hogwarts castle, where they deposited their belongings. Entering through the double doors, they followed the flood of returning students to the Great Hall, which featured an expansive ceiling that magically reflected the starry sky outside. On the far end of the room, the High Table seated the school's many professors as well as Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, who gazed around the room behind his half-moon spectacles.

Approaching the Gryffindor table, James waved at fourth-year students Frank Longbottom and Dill Stewart before sitting next to them. Just across from their seats sat Lily, Alice, and Hillary, three of the Gryffindor girls in James' year, but they all seemed too caught up in their joint conversation to notice the new arrivals.

"Morgan talked to me already," Frank told James, leaning closer as he mentioned the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain. "Apparently, she has big plans for Quidditch this year. You're still playing, right?"

"Of course! You need a third Chaser, don't you?" James assured him. "What would you and King do without me?"

"Maybe we'd actually win," Frank joked, and James laughed before waving at Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, the Gryffindor House ghost.

After a few minutes, the busyness of the Great Hall had lessened, and the Transfiguration professor and Deputy Headmistress, Professor McGonagall, entered the room with a queue of wide-eyed first-years behind her. As the seated students watched their progress down the hall, a few last stragglers ran back to their tables; among those rushing to their seats, James spotted with annoyance his Slytherin rival, Severus Snape, who ran up behind Lily and tapped her shoulder.

"I found out!" he told her, and Lily brightened. Looking less than thrilled at Snape's appearance, the other Gryffindor girls shared pointed looks and faced the other direction.

"Well?" Lily asked her Slytherin friend expectantly.

"She's an Auror," he answered, "but no one's supposed to know—"

"Severus!" a Slytherin prefect hissed, and Snape glanced furtively over his shoulder before turning back.

"I'll tell you later," he promised, and he quickly sidled off to join his Housemates.

"Hey, what's with Snivellus?" James demanded once he had left, drawing Lily's attention. "I thought that you weren't speaking to him after what he pulled last year in the Forbidden Forest."

To his satisfaction, the other girls turned to Lily as well, waiting for her answer. Noticing her roommates' narrowed eyes, Lily put on a look of forced patience. "Well," she addressed James, "it really isn't any of your business, but we made up over the summer. He explained what had happened, and—"

"Wait, you and Sniv live next door?" James interrogated.

"It's _Severus_ , and we're neighbors," Lily corrected, struggling to keep her voice composed. "We sometimes meet up to talk or read our textbooks. Anyway, I didn't want to see him at first, but he finally made it past my sister and explained himself. Apparently, he didn't know what the meetings in the forest were about at first, and he didn't find out about the full extent of the 'school' until the end of the year."

"And you believed him?" Sirius asked, scoffing. "Of course he told you that!"

"Do you even know what they were learning?" James added. "It seemed pretty deep in the Dark Arts to me."

"He said that it wasn't all bad at first," Lily replied, but Alice pursed her lips.

"Are you sure you aren't just defending him because he's your friend?" she asked, her round face creased with suspicion.

"She's right," Hillary agreed. "He shouldn't have gone to the Forbidden Forest in the first place!"

"Of course what he did was wrong," Lily answered, "but he tried to make amends, didn't he? I believe that he was sincere, and I chose to forgive him."

Although they did not argue, the other girls frowned at each other while James spoke up again. "What was he trying to tell you just now?" he asked, motioning towards where Snape had taken his seat.

"Who our new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor is," Lily answered. "I was curious, so he said that he'd find out."

"An Auror, did he say?" Alice piped up, suddenly interested. "She must be really good. I wonder what her name is."

"I guess we'll find out soon," Hillary said, pointing at the High Table. During their talk, the Sorting Ceremony had started, and the last first-year had just trotted to her table, signaling the beginning of the start-of-term feast. Right on cue, hundreds of platters and goblets materialized on the tables, and the journey-weary students began to eat voraciously.

After an hour or so of re-familiarizing themselves with the Hogwarts cuisine, everyone grew quiet as Headmaster Dumbledore stood from the High Table and approached the podium overlooking the Great Hall.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, both new students and old," he announced, his beard and purple robes glinting in the mock starlight. "I expect that you are tired from the journey, so bear with me as I discuss the year ahead. A new addition has been made to the staff, filling the role of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, but the candidate could not make it to the feast tonight." Sitting up straighter, Sirius watched the Headmaster carefully. "Classes will, however, proceed regularly in the morning."

Slumping back down in his seat, Sirius pouted while Dumbledore began to describe several of the school rules, and Hillary stuck out her lower lip as she looked at the others. "He didn't even say her name."

Nodding, the others listened to the rest of the speech distractedly until the students were excused to their dormitories. As he stood to leave, James heard a familiar voice call out his name from behind, and he turned around to see Morgan McGonagall hurrying towards him. Observing without surprise the altered prefect badge on her chest, he noted that she had become Head Girl just before she shoved a bundle of loose papers into his arms, all covered with sketches of a Quidditch pitch.

"Practice starts in a week, but I want you to start reading these diagrams that I drew up before then. Have them finished before our first meeting, and make sure to bring notes. We'll start putting our heads together then."

Waving goodbye, she ignored his attempted objections and waved at a group of dawdling first-years. "Over here! Gryffindor Tower is this way!" she called, walking purposefully out of the Great Hall's double doors with her charges and leaving James behind.

Leaning over James' shoulder, Sirius peered at Morgan's complicated sketches. "How does she have time for all of this?"

Shaking his head as he fought a groan, James hoisted the diagrams and followed his roommates out of the Great Hall with a sinking feeling in his chest, trying not to drop any of the papers on the way to their dormitory.


	3. The Arrival of an Auror

**The Arrival of an Auror**

When the boys gathered their supplies the next morning, Remus accidentally disturbed Mussmug on the nightstand where his pet was sleeping, and the kitten promptly jumped to its feet and hissed loudly before leaping away. Narrowly avoiding the bounding gray blur, James grabbed his textbooks and walked with the others down to the Great Hall.

"Arithmancy's today," Remus announced as he looked over their schedule. "It's a joint lesson with the Ravenclaws, right after Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"I still wish that they had cancelled our first class," Sirius complained, poking at his food. "Merlin knows we could use the sleep."

"Well, I'm glad the professor could make it," Remus differed, folding up the schedule and putting it away. "It's best to jump right into our classes so we know what to expect."

"Easy for you to say!" James exclaimed. "You don't have fifty pages of Quidditch tactics to read!" He had purposely avoided bringing the diagrams that Morgan had given him last night, hoping to escape them for at least another morning.

"That's true: I don't," Remus replied, giving him an unapologetic smile. "But it's all the same, isn't it? Best start early so that you can win."

"I just wish winning wasn't so _boring_ ," James muttered, but he stood as the others finished eating and exited the Great Hall, leaving the ceiling's faux sunshine behind them.

In a few minutes, the four had seated themselves in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, joining the other Gryffindor third-years who had already arrived. Sirius offered a few choice expletives under his breath when he saw that the professor had not yet arrived, and the students began to whisper among themselves as they waited for her to appear. By the time the beginning of the period arrived, still no one had walked through the door, and people started to converse in earnest.

"Do you think something happened to her?" Alice whispered to her roommates.

"She made it last night after all, didn't she?" Lily questioned, and Sirius pushed up from his desk. At the grinding of his chair against the floor, the other students looked his way as he balled his fists.

"If she still hasn't made it to Hogwarts, I'm going to march straight up to Dumbledore's office and demand he turn back time," he growled, grabbing his textbook and stepping towards the door. "In fact, I think I'll just skip class and go—"

Suddenly, the door banged open, and a rosy-cheeked witch in a pointed hat whisked into the room, dumping an armload of notes onto the desk in the front. Her blonde hair stood on end as if she had just been running, and she panted as she shoved her belongings into place. Although a few giggles floated around the room at her appearance, everyone snapped to attention when she turned her big, brown eyes and brilliant smile towards them, all feeling the same sort of instant attraction to her.

"I'm sorry about the time," the witch apologized, closing the door with a wave of her wand. "I didn't make it here until late last night, and I slept longer than I should have." Although he still wore a frown, Sirius slowly slid back down into his seat as she addressed the class again. "My name is Professor Valerie Cleary, but you can all call me Val."

Glancing to the right, the professor locked eyes on the window in the front of the classroom and marched to it, pulling it open so a soft breeze could drift through. "There, that's much better, isn't it? Now I can feel myself think." Walking back towards her desk, she said, "While I get myself in order, let's start with the basics. Does anyone have any questions?"

Almost at once, Alice's hand shot into the air. "Professor Cleary—"

"Please, it's Val," the professor insisted, waving her hand dismissively as she straightened her notes. "If you must, call me Professor."

"Professor Val," Alice corrected, "aren't you an Auror?"

"Yes, I am," Val answered, pausing with a tilt of her head. "Who told you that?"

"Another student," Alice replied.

"Really? Word sure travels quickly around here."

"Professor, I heard something about the Minister trying to take away the administrative powers of the Auror Department," Remus stated, raising his hand. "Did the motion go through?"

"What's your name?" Val asked him, smiling.

"Remus Lupin," he answered.

"Well, Remus," she began, "I'm happy to say that it died almost as soon as it was suggested. Your Headmaster wouldn't let it go through, and most of the Wizengamot was on his side." Chuckling, she added, "I don't think that Jenkins is too happy with Dumbledore at the moment. At any rate, I'm glad that you've been doing research: having background knowledge of the Auror Department may make this class easier."

"Why did Dumbledore hire you?" Hillary burst out before blushing deeply. "I meant no offense, Professor Val, I just wanted to know why—"

"Why I took time off to teach at Hogwarts instead of continuing my job as an Auror?" Val finished for her, and she smiled at Hillary's flushed features. "I don't mind you asking. To tell you the truth, Dumbledore wasn't the only one to prompt my release. After being thwarted by him in the Wizengamot, the Minister finally agreed to let one of the Aurors fill the open position for professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts. I think she may have wanted a final word after her defeat; anyways, I was the first to volunteer and get approved."

"Isn't it bad for the Auror Department, though?" James questioned. "What if another family of Muggles is attacked?"

"If a large threat comes up, I'll be able to leave the school and help my fellow Aurors in the fight," she replied. "Rest assured, I wouldn't be here unless the Department could afford me."

Although still doubtful that the Minister would care either way, James sat back and let Alice raise a question. "What's it like being an Auror? Have you ever arrested a Dark wizard?"

"A few," Professor Val told her, giving her another one of her radiant smiles, and the class gasped.

"How did you do it?" Hillary demanded.

"Are you going to teach us how to track them down?" James asked.

"What if they use their Dark magic against you?" Peter gasped.

"Are you going to teach us any spells?" Lily added.

"One at a time!" Professor Val interrupted, raising her hands, and everyone sat back in their seats. "Give me a chance to think!" After shaking her head with a wry smile, she took a breath and said, "I'll answer all of your questions as the school year goes on. I'm going to set up this year's classes like the Auror training, so you'll get a good idea of what we do."

Turning around to demonstrate, she waved her wand at the board behind her and conjured a written list of goals for the class. Leaning forward, James spotted phrases like, "Concealment and Disguise," "Recognizing Dark Magic," and "Stealth and Tracking." As the students skimmed the list, they began buzzing among themselves until Professor Val tapped her wand on the board for attention.

"It normally takes an Auror three years to go through the required training after leaving Hogwarts, so fitting it all into one year will be a difficult task. Because of this, I have chosen the most crucial aspects of the training, and I think I can simplify it so that you'll have a good feel for the Department. I thought that we'd start with magical jurisprudence so as to get the technical knowledge over with before starting with more advanced techniques. Does anyone have any questions?"

Sharing grins, the students waited for someone to raise a query as they fidgeted in their seats. Eventually, Lily raised her hand and waited for Val to call on her. "Before we start, can you at least tell us about one of your missions?"

Everyone turned to stare at the professor, and Val thought for a moment. "Actually, I don't know if I should," she answered. "No one outside of Hogwarts is even supposed to know that I'm here."

"Why not?" Remus asked.

"It's for my protection," she replied, and Peter gave a short yelp.

"Is someone hunting you?" he demanded, and the others gasped collectively.

"Not expressly," Val answered, smiling at him as she shook her head, "but it's getting more dangerous for us Aurors. During times of war, we normally keep our locations a secret, oftentimes using the Fidelius Charm to hide. Honestly, I'm surprised that a student had already heard about my employment, seeing as Dumbledore kept it from public knowledge."

"You don't have to worry about us telling anyone!" James promised. "Can't you at least tell us one story?"

"Please, Professor?" Hillary pleaded, and Professor Val glanced from side to side as she contemplated.

"Well," she finally said, "there was this one time rather recently . . ."

"Please tell!" Alice begged, and Professor Val turned to the upturned faces of the class and smiled.

"Well, all right," she agreed. "I guess one story couldn't hurt." Scooting to the edges of their seats, the students waited for her to begin with bated breath. "A few weeks ago," Val began, "I helped arrest a wizard who was practicing illegal hexes on Muggles in west London. The story actually landed in _The Daily Prophet_ —did any of you see it?"

"Wait, do you mean the arrest of Grimean Righton?" Alice asked, her jaw dropping.

"That's right," Val replied. "I was sent out with Obadiah Grace and Alastor Moody—both from my graduating class, and very talented Aurors. We cornered Grimean in the back of a cosmetics store while the Muggle owners were sleeping upstairs. There was a bit of a scuffle, and a few chairs and windows exploded when Grimean fought back with the Fire-Making Spell. By the time we got him on the ground, the shop-owners had woken up and seen the mess, but we Obliviated them before any more Muggles could arrive. It seems that Grimean was going to settle down in the shop for the night, after which he would awake and use the Anti-Gravity Hex on the owners before leaving, as was his custom with his victims."

"How did you stop him?" Lily asked.

"It was Alastor's idea, actually," Professor Val replied, smiling. "We had Grimean backed in a corner, and I reckon that he wanted a bit of fun with the job. Since Alastor is the best at dueling, he distracted Grimean while Obadiah and I set up a few defensive barriers in front of the back room. When Grimean tried to retreat, he got stuck in the doorway, so he spent the next minute shooting jinxes behind his back while we dodged and tried to return fire."

"How did you finally capture him?" Alice prodded.

"I eventually put a Time-Slowing Spell on the room, and Obadiah was able to hit Grimean with the Full-Body Bind Curse. That stopped the ricocheting jinxes, and Alastor took care of the Muggles afterwards. Unfortunately, Grimean damaged himself quite dramatically in his panic; most of his torso was burnt and marred by his own spells, making him quite incapable of fighting thereafter or making a fuss during his trial. He was sent off to Azkaban, where he'll serve seven years for antagonizing non-magical folk and causing destruction to private residences."

"What's Azkaban?" Peter asked, and Val nodded understandingly at his confusion.

"It's an all-wizarding prison just off the coast of England, in the middle of the North Sea. It's Unplottable, so sea-faring Muggles won't accidentally stumble across it."

Raising his hand, James waited for Val to call on him. "Was Grimean working for Lord Voldemort?" he asked, and all of the other students gasped at his use of the name. Professor Val, however, did not look startled; she just stared at him and slowly chewed the inside of her lip.

"We're not sure," she answered. "Our past experiences with Grimean showed him to be somewhat of a loner, although he had executed heists with his brothers in the past. His family is somewhat renowned for their anti-Muggle mischief, but there was no evidence suggesting that Grimean had joined forces with the Death Eaters. All we know is that his habits had grown increasingly more violent over the last few months, and we just managed to nab him in London after trailing him throughout the country."

"Couldn't he escape from Azkaban?" Peter questioned, biting his lip. "What if he comes back?"

"No one has escaped from Azkaban in the hundreds of years since its creation," Val told him, chuckling slightly. "He won't be back anytime soon. And besides, with how badly he was burned, I don't think that he could find the strength to even try. His arms were rendered near-useless during the fight, and it's quite a swim back to land."

"How many missions have you had as an Auror?" Lily piped up. "That wasn't your first one, was it?"

"Oh, no," Val replied. "I graduated from the training four years ago, and I've seen things much worse than Grimean."

"Really?" Alice gasped.

Nodding, Val smiled brightly and answered, "Once I was stuck between a rising cliff face and a band of murderous goblins, having nothing to defend myself with except a particularly infuriated Swooping Evil that had made its home in the rocks above. I can't say that it liked me any more than the goblins," Professor Val said, laughing. "There was another time when two witches concocted a dangerous form of the Enveloping Potion, and Obadiah and I had to blast our way through their house as it rose up the walls. Also, there was another time when Alastor took on four wizards with nothing but a carving knife, and I had to save him from being blown to pieces while under the effects of the Lethargy Hex myself. I didn't think that we'd survive that one, but you should see what Alastor can do with a blade . . ."

Continuing to relay her experiences, Professor Val kept the class enthralled with one story after another, the list on the board forgotten in the students' eagerness to hear about her adventures. For almost the entire period, no one spoke up or interrupted her narratives, although they all gasped, laughed, and applauded whenever appropriate. By the time Professor Val had started her fifth story, James felt like he had known her and her two partners all his life; Moody and Grace seemed just as real to him as Val did, and he could almost picture them standing beside her as she talked. Only much later when Professor Val glanced up at the clock did she come to an abrupt stop, blinking and running a hand through her hair.

"Merlin, is that the time? I'm so sorry: I didn't mean for you to be late for your other classes. You're all excused." When everyone groaned, she tapped her wand to her pile of notes and sent a small leaflet flying to each desk. "I brought copies of the Auror Department's registration handouts, and I'd like you all to read it before returning for the next class. Have a good afternoon!"

Quickly flipping through their leaflets, the Gryffindor students left the classroom in twos and threes, chatting about the lesson. Catching Sirius on the way out, James elbowed him in the side and showed him his pamphlet.

" _The Auror Department: From the Inside_ ," he read, grinning. "This is going to be an excellent class!"

"It won't be bad, I suppose," Sirius agreed, seemingly reluctant to show his enthusiasm while he thumbed through his own copy. "The professor's a bit helter-skelter, but she seems to know her stuff."

"I doubt anyone's going to skive off their homework this year!" James commented, watching as the other students pored over their reading assignment on the way to their next class.

Peter waved goodbye to his roommates and headed off to his free period while the others walked to the Arithmancy classroom on the lower level. When they entered the classroom, James spied several rows of desks lining the length of the narrow room, which was decorated with an ornate grandfather clock in the corner. Several heads turned upon their entrance, and James noted that the Ravenclaws had already arrived. In the front, a young, rather gangly wizard halted his lecture and turned to stare at the Gryffindors through his thickly-framed glasses; blinking several times, he gawked while they began to take their seats among the Ravenclaws, who stared at them with equal curiosity.

"Can any of you explain the meaning of this?" the professor finally spoke up, peering reprovingly at the newcomers.

"Sorry, Professor Flannegin," Lily responded as she sat down. "We would have arrived on time, but Defense Against the Dark Arts ran late."

Sniffing, Flannegin pushed his glasses up his nose and frowned. "Well, I'm going to have to speak with your professor later. As for now, you can all join us on page 28 of _Numerology and Grammatica_ —we're going over the magical properties of the numerical chart."

Obediently opening his textbook as Professor Flannegin continued his lecture, James peered at the complex graph on the page and suppressed a groan. "It looks like Morgan will have to wait," he muttered to himself, thinking of the immense amount of homework he would likely receive at the lesson's conclusion.

After trying unsuccessfully to concentrate on Flannegin's discourse for several minutes, his mind continually turning to Professor Val's engaging stories in the previous class, James looked around to make sure no one was watching and began reading the Auror Department's pamphlet under his desk. Glancing up after a moment to make sure that no one had noticed, he spotted Sirius and Alice reading their pamphlets just a few desks in front of him, and a smile crept across his face before he looked back down and ignored Professor Flannegin's lecture.


	4. Horklumps vs Werewolf

**Horklumps vs. Werewolf**

Throughout the next few days, James was horrified by the amount of homework that he and the other Gryffindor third-years received from their professors. In fact, after a particularly lengthy lecture and corresponding essay assignment from Professor Sinistra in Astronomy, he swore to Sirius that they had more work than in the two previous years combined. Although he promptly agreed, Sirius attested that the worst of the lot was Potions, although his complaints had less to do with the amount of homework given than the demeanor of their professor. Professor Slughorn continued to suffer under the delusion that Potions was the best-liked class in Hogwarts, and he showed an irritating favoritism towards Snape and Lily, two members of the Slug Club and the best students in the class.

However, Sirius brightened at the prospect of Muggle Studies, which he, James, and Peter took together on Thursday. During the first lecture, Sirius showed an uncharacteristic amount of interest and grilled Professor Merryweather about the operations of automobiles and fighter jets before she finally told him to quiet down. Afterwards, however, pleased by his interest, she suggested a book entitled _The Muggle World of Motion_ to borrow from the library.

"Honestly, I had no idea Muggles were so advanced!" Sirius told James on their way to Transfiguration. "They have ways of getting around everywhere! Do you think the idea of enchanted motorboats could get on?"

Listening to Sirius' chatter as they walked along, James waved to Remus when they met him in the Transfiguration classroom.

"I just came from Study of Ancient Runes," Remus told the others, pulling out a chart of strange-looking symbols. "Look at this! Using these, we can translate scripts from ancient wizarding communities dating back to Babylon!"

"That's . . . fascinating," James replied, really not interested at all, and Remus continued to pore over the chart until Professor McGonagall addressed the seated students.

"Today's lesson is not a practical one, so you can put away your wands," she told them, drawing a few groans as the class obeyed. After waiting patiently for them to finish, she asked, "Can anyone tell me what an Animagus is?"

No one replied, and she set down her pointed hat on the desk in front of her. "An Animagus is a witch or wizard who can turn into an animal at will, simultaneously retaining their human thoughts and memories. More crudely, an Animagus is someone who can do this."

In an instant, Professor McGonagall's prim figure disappeared as she shrank down to the size and shape of a rather proper-looking tabby cat. After his initial awe, James smirked slightly when he saw that the silver cat boasted two circular markings around its eyes, resembling McGonagall's spectacles. Having gasped at McGonagall's performance, the students began to cheer as she transformed back into her usual appearance and nodded in acknowledgement.

"This particular skill takes many years to accomplish, although I learned to Transfigure myself by the age of seventeen," she told the spectators. "Actually, many wizarding students from the African school of Uagadou learn to become Animagi by their fourth year. It's a sort of Human Transfiguration, a complex branch of magic that many of you will learn practically in your final years at Hogwarts."

Beginning to pace down the classroom, McGonagall continued, "Unlike what you may think, I have no control over which animal I Transfigure into. Each wizard is limited to a single animal based on their inner qualities and personality traits, and they cannot switch from one to another on a whim. Beyond the physical change, the thought processes and emotional capabilities of Animagi are greatly simplified in their animal form, although split-second instincts may become easier and even second-nature. Despite the many limitations and difficulties of becoming an Animagus, the rewards are incredible: concealment and disguise are accessible with ease, and Animagi can enjoy the full extent of their secondary forms, such as enhanced smell, hearing, or even the sensation of flight."

Clasping her hands behind her back, she added, "Of course, considering the mayhem that would ensue should wizards and witches of all sorts start traipsing as wild animals across the globe, several countries have instituted a registration system for Animagi. As you may have noticed, I have rather . . . distinctive markings in my animal form," she said. The students took upon the rare invitation to laugh, and James may have even caught a sparkle in McGonagall's eyes before she continued. "All Animagi do, in fact, retain some physical resemblance to their human forms. Our Ministry of Magic has an Animagus Registry to keep track of Animagi in the country, and the penalties of not registering are severe. Unregistered Animagi pose a great threat to the Statute of Secrecy, but these practitioners are rare, as it is extremely difficult to learn such a complicated piece of magic and keep it hidden from others."

Raising her hand bravely, as no one usually interrupted Professor McGonagall during a lecture, Hillary asked, "If I may . . . how did you learn to become an Animagus?"

"I learned under the instruction of Albus Dumbledore," McGonagall answered, and everyone started.

"Dumbledore is an Animagus?" Lily gasped.

"No, but he was the Transfiguration professor at the time of my schooling," McGonagall told her. "Normally, it would be impossible to adequately guide someone through the procedure of becoming an Animagus if lacking the ability yourself, but Albus has always been an exception to the rules."

Sharing a look with Sirius, James thought back to his parents' discussion about Dumbledore during summer break. Professor McGonagall, however, said no more about Dumbledore's instruction, instead fascinating her class with seemingly endless facts and theories about Animagi. No one glanced at the clock during the period, and the Gryffindors chatted animatedly with each other when she finally wrapped up the lesson and dismissed the students.

"That was amazing!" Peter praised as he and the other boys set off down the hallway.

"It sounds like a lot of work to learn, though," Sirius added, nodding thoughtfully.

"Sure," James agreed, "but think about the look on someone's face if he saw a bird hopping around and it suddenly Transfigured into a human right in front of them!"

James and Sirius started laughing at the joke, but they quickly sobered when they spotted Remus' drooping expression. Clearing his throat, Sirius leaned over to examine the schedule that Remus held in his hand. "Isn't Care of Magical Creatures next?" he asked in a would-be nonchalant voice, and Remus nodded without lifting his eyes from the floor.

"I'm not sure that signing up for this class was such a good idea," Remus admitted to the others . Thinking back to Mussmug's reaction when she first saw Remus, James wrapped his arm around his friend's shoulders.

"Come on, it won't be that bad!" he told him. "I'm sure that nothing will happen. After all, Sirius puts up with you all the time, and he's practically an animal."

Sirius punched James' arm in response, but Remus did not smile as his two friends wrestled their way onto the castle grounds. Their group followed the rest of the Gryffindors to a small, fenced-off area a little ways from the Forbidden Forest, where they joined the third-year Slytherins for the joint lesson. As Sirius gave him a final shove, James saw Snape curl his lip at their antics, but the greasy-haired boy soon lost his scowl when Lily gave him a wave; behind her, Lily's roommates exchanged a series of deep-set frowns, and James smirked to himself.

Once all of the students had gathered together, they waited for their professor to approach from the other side of the fenced-off space, where he had been observing something on the ground with Hagrid, the Hogwarts Gameskeeper. As he and Hagrid stood, the professor waddled purposefully over to the watching students, knees straightened as if his legs had recently been hit by a poorly-cast Full-Body Bind Curse. Upon closer inspection, James realized that the professor's legs were in fact made of wood, the left one replaced by a thick pole from the kneecap down while the right lacked any flesh whatsoever. The professor wore a long, black cloak like a shawl, which failed to conceal the noticeable gap in his torso where his left arm was supposed to be. Eyes wide, James shared a quick glance with his roommates, meeting the same looks of worry on their faces.

Waving at the class, Hagrid towered over the Care of Magical Creatures professor, who threw his right peg leg in front of the other before coming to a stop. "Great to see yeh all again!" Hagrid told the students through his thick, tangled beard. "Yeh're goin' ter love today's lesson—it's really somethin' special!"

"Yes, thank you, Hagrid!" the wizard beside him spoke up, and Hagrid waved again before stomping off towards his hut. Apparently oblivious to the growing concern of his students, the legless wizard flashed them a beaming smile, his teeth catching in the bright sun. Placing his only remaining hand on his hip—or what remained of it—he looked down at the class and announced, "Welcome to Care of Magical Creatures! I am Professor Kettleburn, and I'll be your instructor for the rest of the school year!"

Taking in his marred form, James briefly doubted the validity of his statement. Some of the other students seemed to be questioning his words as well, and Alice raised her hand. "Excuse me, Professor, but how did you lose your . . ." Quickly growing red, she trailed off and gestured at his wooden stumps. "I mean, how did you get your . . . er . . ."

A light dawned in Professor Kettleburn's bright blue eyes, and he glanced down at his missing feet. "Ah, you mean these old things?" Laughing, he lifted one of his wooden pegs. "I got them from Pikes and Blogarts, the finest wood import and export business in Great Britain! Carved 'em myself, actually, after purchasing the blocks. Ollivander purchases his supplies from them sometimes, you know—they're a very reliable company."

"No, I meant to ask how you lost your legs in the first place," Alice corrected him, now very concerned.

"Oh," Kettleburn said, deflated, and he looked down at his left stump. "I got a little careless while trying to lead a Chimaera into its cage for my upper level classes once." Startled, the students all took a step back while Kettleburn waved around his other stump. "And this one was from a Red Cap; it jumped out of its hole and got me with a bone knife when I stepped too close to its burrow. Still, it wasn't nearly so bad as the time an Erumpent stabbed my arm with its horn and pinned it to the back of—"

Stopping as he realized that his students were all huddled against each other, he cleared his throat and changed the subject. "Anyway, today we're starting out with something much more—er—tame. Who wants to join me over the fence?"

No one moved, and Professor Kettleburn laughed again, throwing back his golden, shoulder-length hair. "I'm just pulling your legs: you don't have a choice! Come on, now!" he commanded, turning about sharply and marching as best he could back to the other side of the enclosed space.

Eyeing each other, the students waited for someone to follow after him, but despite there being no visible creature beyond the fence, no one stepped up. Finally, James, who was standing behind Snape, gave the tweedy boy a shove forward and made him stumble against the fence. Although he caught the top beam to keep himself from falling over, his movement seemed to encourage the rest of the group, who began to follow Professor Kettleburn one at a time. As he climbed over the top bar of the fence, James received a sour look from Snape, but the Slytherin did not speak as the class approached the far side of the field.

Standing with his hand planted firmly on his hip, Kettleburn waited for the students to join him and made a jerking motion with his right stump as if trying to tap his nonexistent foot. Once the class had gotten within hearing range, he motioned towards the earth at a circle of pink, black-spiked mushrooms.

"Horklumps!" he announced.

"Professor, we aren't in Herbology," Conway Avery, one of the third-year Slytherins, said dryly.

"No, you misunderstand me!" Professor Kettleburn told him, shaking his head. "Horklumps are animals, not a part of the landscape! They appeared on the grounds over the course of the past week, and we need to relocate them so they don't overtake the whole castle—they're very fast breeders."

"Are you sure those aren't just mushrooms?" Alice asked.

"Positive!" Kettleburn replied. "Watch this!" Whipping out a rather swishy wand, Kettleburn pointed it at one of the mushroom tops and shouted, " _Flipendo!_ "

Scurrying backwards in spite of themselves, the class watched as the mushroom broke free of the earth and collapsed limply on the grass as if struck. Quickly pocketing his wand to free his hand, Professor Kettleburn grasped the creature's dome and held it up. The animal began to wiggle a few tentacle-like structures on its stalk, prompting a small cascade of dirt to shower downwards as the students muttered exclamations of disgust and fear.

"That's how you handle Horklumps: just hit 'em with a good Knockback Jinx and watch the magic happen!" Professor Kettleburn told the students, beaming. Summoning a bucket out of thin air with his wand, he filled it with dirt and placed the Horklump safely inside. "They're often described as garden pests, but their juice is useful for thickener in healing potions. For now, you can all practice displacing them so that they can live their lives somewhere where they won't overrun the school. Put them in the bucket when you've got them!"

Bending down in groups, the students got onto their knees and began shouting incantations at the mushroomy animals. Alice and Snape seemed to be having trouble making their spells strong enough, as their Horklumps merely jiggled when hit. Conversely, Mulciber and Wilkes sent up small clouds of dirt whenever they shot a spell at the creatures, making a few of the girls glare at them when the dust landed in their hair. Kneeling to deal with one of the closest Horklumps, James shot a Knockback Jinx at the creature and waited as it fell sideways before pulling it up. At his touch, the mushroom began wiggling violently, and James threw it away as its slimy tentacles wrapped around his fingers.

Next to him, Sirius seemed to experiencing the same frustration, and he shook his hand repeatedly until his Horklump flew off and landed on Alice's head unnoticed. Glowering at the animal, he complained, "Who knew that mushrooms could be so disgusting? I'm sure there are dozens of more exciting creatures we could be learning about!"

"The least he could do is bring in some Chimaeras," James agreed, nodding at Professor Kettleburn with a huff. Not wanting to pick up another Horklump, he and Sirius watched the other students for a moment before Sirius suddenly perked up.

"Hey, do you suppose that Kettleburn will know anything about werewolves?" he questioned James, who glanced at their professor's disfigured form.

"If anyone does, it's him," James agreed, and he stood up stealthily amid the busyness of the other students, hurrying over to Kettleburn with Sirius right behind him. After glancing around to make sure that no one was listening, James tapped the professor's shoulder and made him turn around.

"Excuse me, sir," he spoke up, "but I was wondering if you knew anything about werewolves."

"Werewolves?" Professor Kettleburn asked, blinking. "But why would you want to know about them? We're dealing with Horklumps today."

"I know that," James answered, "but I wanted to know if you could tell me anything about them in case I ever met one."

"Well, I can assure you that you're quite safe here!" Kettleburn replied, laughing. "There's no chance that one will ever be romping about Hogwarts!"

"But there are some in the Forbidden Forest, right?" Sirius prodded. Sobering, Kettleburn frowned at him.

"Surely you weren't planning on going in to find out, were you?" he questioned.

"Of course not," Sirius assured him quickly.

"Then I'm afraid that you're out of luck!" Kettleburn exclaimed with a grin, his voice returning to its usual gusto. "I could have helped you there!"

"But what if one ever came out of the Forbidden Forest?" James insisted. "It's good to be prepared, isn't it?"

"Well, of course," Kettleburn agreed slowly, scratching the back of his neck with his one hand. "Still, I'm afraid I won't be of much help. I don't really deal with them much in this class, werewolves being a sort of half-creature, and I certainly don't teach on them in the third year. In fact, I haven't had much practical experience with them at all; I tend to deal with friendlier creatures."

Deciding not to bring up Kettleburn's dealings with Chimaeras and Erumpents, James merely said, "We were just wondering if you knew a way to stop their transformations."

"Stop their transformations?" the professor exclaimed, and James and Sirius glanced over their shoulders to see if the other students had overheard. "I'm afraid that's quite impossible!"

"Do you at least know how to make them shorter?" James asked.

"Shorter?" Kettleburn repeated, tilting his head.

"I mean easier," James swiftly corrected, but he regretted his words at the look on Kettleburn's face. "Or maybe less painful—er, no, that's not it . . ."

"He means to ask if you could tell us anything about their transformations," Sirius jumped in, throwing James a withering look. "Anything at all."

"Well, I'm hardly an expert," Professor Kettleburn told them again. "I don't usually deal with their kind, so to speak, and I haven't studied their transformations in detail."

"But you're the Care of Magical Creatures professor!" James protested. "You must know something!"

"I can suggest a few books if you want," Kettleburn replied, shrugging his shoulder.

"But we just wanted to know if—"

Suddenly, a high-pitched, inhuman screeching cut James' words off, and he turned to see a herd of Horklumps jumping out of the earth and dashing away from Remus on their tiny, root-like appendages. Falling backwards as the Horklump in his hand leapt free, Remus hit the earth and clutched the spot where the creature had sucked at his skin with its tentacles. A few Slytherins started snickering at the sight of the running animals, and Professor Kettleburn bent down awkwardly over his wooden legs to examine Remus' wound.

"Ah, don't worry, they sometimes do that," he told Remus, but he had soon straightened and pointed at the fleeing Horklumps. "Quick!" he advised the other students. "Catch them while they're out of the ground!"

Diving forward, Lily and Alice landed on top of the Horklumps and smothered them; still emitting unearthly screams, the creatures wriggled furiously as they were quickly rounded up by the nearest students and tossed into the bucket. Unfortunately, a few of the animals managed to escape from their pursuers and dashed as quickly as they could towards the castle, slipping under the fence in throes.

"Don't let them get away!" Kettleburn yelled. Most of the class, encouraged by the unexpected excitement, vaulted over the fence with the professor following rapidly behind, his black cloak flapping as he struggled to find a way over the fence. Staying behind, James, Sirius, and Peter rushed to their fallen roommate and helped him to his feet while a few of the Slytherins looked on.

"Do you reckon every mushroom runs away from Lupin like that?" Wilkes asked his Housemates, and they all chuckled.

Feeling a broiling in his stomach, James faced Wilkes and snapped, "Are you sure they weren't running from you? If I wasn't so brave, I think I'd run from that ugly mess that you call a face, too."

Gritting his teeth, Wilkes scowled at him while Snape sneered. "Oh, come off it, Potter," Snape told him. "Which of us was the one that got bit?"

"More than just your hand will be hurting if you don't shut up," Sirius retorted.

"Oh please, are you going to hex me in plain sight of a professor?" Snape huffed.

Losing most of his glower as he smirked, Sirius crossed his arms. "You must not know me very well."

"Yeah, at least ol' Fright-Face knows better than to badger my mate here," James agreed.

Snarling, Wilkes growled, "Do you want to spend the rest of the week with antennae sticking out of your head?"

"I've never considered the look," James admitted, turning to face Sirius. "Do you think it'll suit me?"

"I think it would look better on him, personally," Sirius answered, nodding at Wilkes. "It would match the rest of his face."

"What about Snivellus?" James asked. "He reminds me of a fly, the way he noses about in other people's business."

"Do you want to try it?" Sirius asked the two Slytherins, and they both took a few steps back as James and Sirius drew out their wands. Reaching for their own, Snape and Wilkes faced them down just as Professor Kettleburn came thumping back with the rest of the students, holding the bucket full of the newly-captured Horklumps. When he saw his students about to duel, Kettleburn stopped short and offered an exclamation.

"Put your wands away! That's no way to keep everyone safe!"

Slowly, the four students lowered their wands, and Kettleburn smiled. "That's more like it! We've had enough excitement for one day." Brightening at the prospect of ending class early, the students peered at him with bated breath until he raised the bucket. "Time for feeding!"

None of the students attempted to suppress their groans as Kettleburn turned and led the way down the fence, the bucket of chittering Horklumps swinging in his grasp. As the class began to slowly follow him, Sirius knocked into Snape and shoved him into Wilkes, who shot a glare over at the Gryffindors before marching off.

Hurrying to Remus' side while the other students shuffled away, James said, "Don't listen to them: the Horklumps could have attacked anybody."

"Are you sure about that?" Remus asked, looking down.

"Of course I'm sure!" James insisted. "In fact, I was halfway serious when I was talking about them running from Wilkes."

Shaking his head, Remus only sighed. "Let's just hope I don't cause any more problems. My condition is difficult enough to hide without screaming mushrooms calling attention to me."

Walking ahead, he joined the other students around Professor Kettleburn, taking care to keep his distance from the bucket of Horklumps. Chewing his lip, James slowed down, and Sirius and Peter quickly joined him.

"How's he doing?" Sirius inquired, nodding at Remus.

"Not too good," James replied. Remembering their less than helpful discussion with Professor Kettleburn, James felt his shoulders slump. "I don't know what we can do for him."

"Don't worry about it, mate," Sirius encouraged, patting his back. "I'm sure we'll figure something out soon."

Hoping that Sirius was right, James watched Kettleburn explain the dietary habits of Horklumps to the reluctant class. "We should probably pay attention," he finally said, gesturing to the group, and the three roommates slowly dragged their feet forward to join the class.


	5. Animagi in the Making

_**Animagi in the Making**_

Staring blankly at his Arithmancy homework next to the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room, James scribbled in one last equation before picking up Morgan's list of Quidditch tactics once again. To his left, Sirius had enchanted his crinkled-up Transfiguration essay and was making it bounce through the air with a Levitation Charm while Remus and Peter worked on their homework.

"I can't understand what this is talking about!" Peter exclaimed, flipping through the pages of his Muggle Studies textbook while Mussmug snored on at the top of his armchair. "What's a sparking plug, and why do Muggles need it?"

"It's just a tool they use to power their automobiles," Sirius answered distractedly, engrossed with his crumpled essay.

"But why can't they just enchant their cars to move on their own?" Peter responded. "And why do they have to keep on . . ." Breaking off, he glanced back down at the textbook. "'Charging' everything?"

"They can't fix things the way we do," Remus sighed, looking up from his own homework. "It doesn't work like that."

"It's amazing what they come up with all the same," Sirius commented. Still not looking away from his essay, he asked, "Say, James, how have your Quidditch practices been going?"

"We're looking great so far," James answered, but he let out a long sigh. "I only wish our Captain wouldn't get so miffed all the time. Michael didn't get through his encyclopedia of sketches in time for the last practice, and Morgan nearly bit his head off."

"Didn't you finish them?" Sirius asked, glancing at the pile on James' lap.

"Yeah. These are the ones she gave us yesterday," James complained, and Sirius laughed, giving his essay another leap through the air.

"Can you stop doing that?" Remus asked Sirius a little clipped, holding his head in his hand. Frowning at Remus, Sirius simply twirled his wand in a circle, causing his essay to dance around more slowly. Sighing, Remus stood and closed his book before walking out of the common room, causing Mussmug to wake and hiss as he passed.

As Mussmug leapt onto the neighboring armchair and curled up against James' leg, Peter let out a loud groan and buried his head into his hands. "I can't stand this! It's impossible!"

"Not nearly as much as this essay," Sirius countered as he plucked the wadded paper ball out of the air, apparently much more willing to stop playing with it once Remus had left. Spreading it out, he glared at it before tossing it to the side, his poor aim making it land on James' lap. "Who cares about Animagi unless you can become one? It's not like we're ever going to use this stuff!"

Distracted from his reading, James picked up Sirius' essay and read the first few lines before looking back down at his pile of Quidditch tactics. With a sigh, he moved to throw the abandoned Transfiguration essay onto the floor until a phrase near the bottom of the parchment caught his eye, and he lifted the essay back up to read more closely.

 _The uses of becoming an Animagus include convenience in disguise, transportation via flight (if you're lucky), and other stuff like that. Why anyone would choose to walk around as a giraffe as opposed to one's human self is a mystery to me, but who knows, maybe being an animal has more perks than meets the eye._

Mind racing, James looked up and rubbed Mussmug between the ears, a grin quickly spreading across his face. "Sirius, you're a genius!"

"I know that," Sirius replied, still slumped in his chair, "but what is the particular reason for your revelation?"

Holding up the essay so that the others could see it, James said, "I know what we have to do to help Remus!"

Suddenly alert, Sirius and Peter jerked upright and stared at him unblinkingly. "You do?" Peter interrogated.

"Do you still have that book, Sirius?" James asked, ignoring his roommate's question.

"What book do you mea—ah," Sirius answered as he realized what James was talking about. "It's in our room."

"Come on," James beckoned, jumping up, and the others did not stop to question him as they charged up to their dormitory, leaving Mussmug to snore on top of their homework.

Once they had entered their room, Sirius reached under his four-poster and pulled out _Lycanthropy: The Complete Guide_ , handing it to James. Grabbing the book, James flicked through the pages until he reached the third chapter; stopping, he pointed to the top of the page.

"'There has been no record of a werewolf harming any other living thing besides a human during the full moon, but they pose an immediate threat to any wizard, witch, or Muggle standing nearby,'" he read.

"We already know that," Sirius told him, unimpressed. "What's the big deal?"

"Isn't it obvious?" James demanded. "Werewolves attack humans, not animals!"

"So?" Sirius prodded.

"So we're going to become Animagi!"

At his words, Peter let out a sort of strangled gasp while Sirius chewed his lip, contemplating the idea. After a moment's pause, Sirius broke into a smile. "Blimey, I think you've got it!"

"Us?" Peter cried. "Become Animagi?"

"It's like you said, Sirius," James explained, holding up the Transfiguration essay. "Being an animal has more perks than meets the eye. If we can learn how to transform into animals, we'll be able to stay with Remus during the full moon to keep him company. He won't attack us, and maybe he'll even remember something of who he is!"

"But it's impossible!" Peter protested. "We're only kids!"

"Professor McGonagall learned how at age seventeen," Sirius jumped in, now fully enthralled with the idea. "Besides, she said that Uagadou students learn even younger."

"But how would we learn?" Peter argued. "I don't think that Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall would teach us."

"He's got a point there, mate," Sirius agreed, turning to James. "We'd have to explain why, and they wouldn't be too enthralled with us running around with a werewolf during the full moon. Not even Dumbledore would agree to that."

"I'm sure that there are loads of books on the subject," James countered. "Besides, we can just ask Professor McGonagall about it outside of class. She can't suspect us for being curious."

"But how can we be sure that Remus won't tear us apart?" Peter demanded. "We'd still be humans, wouldn't we? What if he can sense the difference?"

"McGonagall said that your thoughts become simpler in your animal form," James answered. "Besides, we won't look like humans. I'm willing to bet that it'll work."

"But what if it doesn't?" Peter argued. "What if we work for months to become Animagi and Remus just rips us to ribbons?"

Looking at James as well, Sirius waited for a response with Peter. Cowed for a moment, James thought over the possible consequences, but he knew that they would not be able to come up with a better idea. At the very least, he had supplied the next step in their search, and there was no way that he was going to leave Remus hanging.

Decided, he crossed his arms. "It's a risk that I'm willing to take."

"All right, then I'm in," Sirius agreed, but Peter bit his lip.

"Are you sure that we should do this?"

"No, but it's the only way to help Remus," James replied. "If we back out, it'll be like giving up! We can't let this go, not when we've just figured it out!"

"How do we start?" Sirius asked.

"We can ask Professor McGonagall about the process," James suggested. "Then it's only a simple matter of teaching ourselves."

"What do we do, just waltz up to her and ask how she learned to turn into a cat?" Sirius joked. "'Please, Professor, can you give us a step-by-step outline describing how to become an Animagus? We want to know so that we can romp around with our werewolf mate on the full moon!'"

"No, we'll have to do it subtly," James said. "We can't let anyone know that we're trying to become Animagi; we'd get into trouble, and then we'd have no way to help Remus."

"But how can we keep it secret? Don't all Animagi have to join the Registry?" Peter questioned.

"Not if they're helping their estranged werewolf mate," Sirius told him.

"But that's illegal!" Peter exclaimed, glancing between James and Sirius with an open mouth. "It wouldn't just be a matter of hiding from our professors—we'd actually be breaking wizarding law!"

"We can't be punished if no one finds out about it," James pointed out.

"But how would we be able to keep it hidden?" Peter asked. "We can't just start turning into cats and dogs in the middle of class!"

"Let's make an agreement, then," James answered. "We'll only practice in our room when no one's there—including Remus."

"Why can't Remus know?" Peter demanded, taken aback.

"You know him: the minute he realizes that we're doing something we're not supposed to, he'll put a stop to it," James replied. "It doesn't matter if it's for his own good or not: he'd tell a professor before we could talk him out of it."

"You're right," Sirius agreed. "Remus can't know. He'd only mess it up for himself."

"Since Remus isn't here now, we can start planning," James suggested. "I bet that Nearly-Headless Nick knows where McGonagall's office is. He's usually floating around in the common room."

Before they could go downstairs, Sirius picked up _Lycanthropy: The Complete Guide_ to stuff it back under his four-poster. As he did, however, he suddenly paused and gave it a contemplative look; delivering a carefree shrug, he then flung the book out of the open window, where it fell with a thunk onto a pointed spire sticking out of the shingled rooftops below. As the breeze picked up, James thought he could hear the book flapping haphazardly in the breeze, but the sound was soon overtaken by the whistling wind.

Peter followed the others downstairs with dragging feet, but James could tell that he did not want to be left behind as they hurried to find the Gryffindor House ghost. Once they had entered the common room again, they spotted Nearly-Headless Nick between a couple of velvety armchairs, where he was examining Mary MacDonald's homework over her shoulder.

"Mmm," Nick murmured, frowning at the textbook. "I'm afraid I can't be of much help—History of Magic has changed a lot since my day. Oh, would you look at that! So that Columbus fellow didn't get to India after all! Funny how those things work out."

When the pounding of James', Sirius', and Peter's feet met his translucent ears, Nick turned around and smiled at the boys in greeting. "Come to ask for help with your homework?"

"No," James answered, but he soon saw that Nick had been looking at Peter, who blushed at his roommates' sidelong glances.

"We wanted to know where Professor McGonagall's office is," Sirius finally explained.

"Oh, of course," the ghost replied, rubbing his short beard. "I believe it's on the first floor in that large tower, right before the staircase to the Serpentine Corridor. You need a password to get in, but I'm afraid I don't know it."

"It's Billywig," Mary spoke up from behind him. "I had to see McGonagall about an assignment a few days ago."

"Thanks!" James told the both of them, and he and his roommates departed with matching waves.

Using Nick's directions, they reached the first floor in a few minutes, and they spent the next few searching for the correct door. When they finally found it, Sirius stepped in front of the others.

"Billywig," he tried, and James heard the clicking of a complicated lock on the other side of the wood before the door swung open and let them inside.

Taking in their surroundings, the three walked in to find a high-ceilinged room with an exhaustive view of the Quidditch training grounds outside of the windows. Seated behind a desk, Professor McGonagall glanced up and peered at the newcomers from over her spectacles, a quill poised over a piece of parchment.

"I must say, this intrusion is most unexpected," she told them, her spectacles glinting.

"We're sorry, but we had to find you," James told her as he stepped farther in. The others followed him, and Sirius flopped down on an armchair in the corner as McGonagall watched.

"May I help you with something?" she asked.

"We were wondering if you could tell us more about Human Transfiguration," Sirius answered, placing his arms behind his head.

"Having trouble with your homework?"

"Not exactly," James replied. "We just wanted to find out more about Animagi."

Raising an eyebrow, McGonagall eyed them closely. "Are you searching for extra credit?"

"We're just interested," Sirius responded. After a moment of searching their faces silently, McGonagall pursed her lips.

"Of course," she stated dryly before turning to Peter. "You, as well?"

"Y-yes!" he stammered, nodding quickly. Sitting back, Professor McGonagall stared at each of the boys in turn until she finally appeared to give up, giving her head a shake.

"What do you want to know?" she asked with a small sigh, removing her spectacles to massage her temple.

"How exactly do you Transfigure yourself?" James immediately responded. When she gave him a hard look, he quickly added, "You didn't really explain how to become an Animagus during the lecture, but you must know all about it."

"There was a reason I didn't go into the process of Human Transfiguration," McGonagall told him pointedly. "It is far too complicated for a student at your level to understand, whether in practice or in theory; there was frankly no need to confuse you with all the details. Many students don't even continue to take Transfiguration in their later years of schooling, and Self-Transfiguration is vastly more difficult than anything you've learned in my class so far."

"But technically speaking, we might be able to grasp the ideas at our age," Sirius pointed out.

"Pardon my insolence, but I thought I was the expert on Transfiguration here," McGonagall responded wryly, placing her spectacles back on her nose. "I believe I know the limits of my students better than they do."

"Couldn't you at least suggest a book on the subject?" James requested.

"All such books will be found in the Restricted Section due to their complexity and delicate content," McGonagall told him. "You would need a signed permission slip to get in there."

"We just wanted a bit of light reading," James intreated, but he immediately realized his mistake at the look on McGonagall's face.

"Light reading?" she repeated, her mouth ajar. Standing, she shook her head and began to guide them towards the door. "I believe I've heard enough of this nonsense."

"But—" James began to protest, but she interrupted him as she shooed Sirius from his chair.

"You're planning something, and I don't want any part of it!" she told them. "If you have a real question, come back and talk to me."

As soon as she had pushed James and the others through the door, it shut with a bang, and James heard the lock whirring back into place. Deflated, he turned to face the others.

"It looks like she won't help us after all," Peter said a little too cheerfully, shrugging. "We tried. I guess that there's nothing more we can do."

"Oh, yes, there is!" Sirius announced, grabbing Peter by the collar of his robes and dragging him down the hall. "We're not finished yet!"

"Where are we going?" Peter half yelped, half gasped as he struggled to free his windpipe.

"There's only one other person I can think of who might know enough to help us—and might be willing to," he answered vaguely, keeping a firm grip on Peter.

"You're not talking about Dumbledore, are you?" Peter questioned, but he was quickly cut off by another tug from Sirius.

"Shh! Not him!"

Beginning to suspect where Sirius was heading, James kept careful pace with him as Sirius turned several corners and ascended a few flights of stairs. After several minutes of rushing through the castle corridors, the three roommates came to a stop in front of an office near the end of a long hallway. Finally letting go of Peter, Sirius knocked on the door twice, and a voice answered him from inside.

"Come in!"

Obeying, the boys opened the door and walked into Professor Val's office, which was decorated with a few periwinkle curtains and scattered flower vases. Overall, the room struck James as and welcoming airy, but the extensive collection of books and scrolls along the wall did not betray the experience of the room's occupant, who was sitting at her desk with a hefty manuscript lying open in her lap.

When Val met the boys' eyes, she smiled and pushed the book aside, folding her hands together. "What can I do for you?"

"We were wondering if you could help us with a homework assignment," Sirius lied.

"What's the problem?"

"We need to find information on Human Transfiguration," he answered. "Particularly anything on Animagi."

Tilting her head, Professor Val frowned. "That's a rather advanced topic."

"McGonagall runs a tough class," Sirius replied, shrugging. "We figured you might know something about it, being an Auror and all."

"Well, Transfiguration was always one of my best subjects," she told him, but her eyes were still clouded. "Why can't you just ask your professor?"

"She's really busy," James jumped in. "I don't think that she has time to help us right now, and we really need someone to give us permission to look in the Restricted Section."

"I'd be happy to help," Professor Val agreed after his explanation, and James felt his shoulders relaxed at her ready offer. Val pulled out a sheet of paper from one of her desk drawers and quickly signed her name on the bottom. "That should be enough to please Mr. Jaune," she announced, naming the Hogwarts librarian. Sliding the document across the table to Peter, she beckoned to the boys with a finger as she stood. "I can do even better for you, in fact. Although I can't tell you much from personal experience, seeing as becoming an Animagus isn't required for budding Aurors, I might have something for you that can start you on your way."

Watching her movements, James and the others waited as she stood and approached a tall bookshelf. After a few moments' searching, she reached in one of the top shelves and grabbed a small chest, complete with a rusty lock hanging from its center brass fastening. Placing the container on her desk, she unlocked it with her wand and pulled out a book with a forest-green cover, handing it to Sirius.

"It's called _Animagi in the Making_. Obadiah gave it to me after finishing a course on Human Transfiguration, but I haven't had much use for it. It explains the process in detail, all right—a little too well for my liking, I'm afraid. It's a difficult read."

"It's perfect!" Sirius told her, and she beamed.

"You can keep it if you'd like," she offered, and the boys brightened. "I'm never going to use it, and it needs a good home."

"Thanks!" they chorused, and Sirius quickly placed the book back inside the chest before heading to the door with the others.

"Don't tell anyone that I gave it to you!" she warned them on the way out. "If someone learns that I've been giving out books for free, I'm going to have a very empty library after a few days."

"Don't worry: we won't be telling anyone," James assured her, giving Sirius and Peter a wink.

When Professor Val closed the door to her office, he beckoned the others a short distance away and lowered his voice. "We need to make sure that Remus doesn't find this book lying around."

In response, Sirius gave James the chest and raised his wand, tapping the wooden lid. " _Abscondo!_ "

Shimmering slightly, the chest faded from view until James could see his hands grasping the bottom of the box. He could still feel the smoothness of the wood, but the lid had disappeared.

"Brilliant!" James exclaimed. "It almost looks like my Invisibility Cloak!"

"We'll keep it under my four-poster," Sirius offered. "He'll never find it there."

"Shouldn't we jinx it or something?" Peter asked, still worried. "What if he tries to open it?"

"He's not even supposed to know that it exists," Sirius reminded him. "This will be fine, as long as we keep it locked."

"Let's start reading as soon as possible," James said before pointing at Peter, who was still holding the permission slip. "You bring that to Mr. Jaune in the morning, and we can search through the library over the weekend. Anything we find, we'll put in the chest so that Remus won't discover it."

"It's settled," Sirius agreed. "We'll start tomorrow."


	6. A Rainy Game

**A Rainy Game**

As promised, James, Sirius, and Peter spent the next weekend locked away in the library, pouring over dozens of old manuscripts by the back tables. Mr. Jaune did not seem thrilled with their persistent company, having never trusted James or Sirius ever since they exploded a Dungbomb in the library during their first year, but the librarian could not deny the authenticity of the document that Sirius handed to him on Saturday morning.

"Big assignment, eh?" Mr. Jaune had huffed after scanning the sheet of paper intensely.

"Yes, sir," James and Sirius answered in unison, and Mr. Jaune scowled down at them briefly before slinking out from behind the front desk and leading them to the Restricted Section.

There, the boys spent many hours reading over the ancient handbooks they located, filled with detailed drawings and instructions for Self-Transfiguration. Despite their many findings, however, _Animagi in the Making_ proved to be one of their most valuable sources, and James took it upon himself to write instructive notes in the margins whenever Mr. Jaune was not there to see him mark the book. In the meantime, Sirius and Peter looked through the bookshelves for possible supplements to aid them with their goal.

"This one says that you should go through several months of preparation before trying to Transfigure yourself," Sirius spoke up from his chair, holding open a copy of _Advanced Self-Manipulation_. "You know: drinking potions, casting spells, and the like."

"It says the same thing here," James answered, his eyes trained on _Animagi in the Making_ as he scribbled down a list of ingredients on a nearby parchment. "There's an Animagus Potion that we need to complete the process."

"How can you even understand what you're reading?" Peter exclaimed, gaping as he looked over James' shoulder. "It looks like the book's been written in ancient runes!"

"It's simple enough once you put your mind to understanding it," James replied, scribbling down another sentence.

"I don't think I'll be able to do this," Peter groaned, sitting back. "You two are much better at Transfiguration than I am! What if it's too hard for me?"

"We won't let you fall behind," James assured him. "Either we all do it together or we die trying."

"Is that even a concern?" Peter questioned, gulping.

"Not if the Animagus Potion goes well," James replied, and Peter buried his head in his arms.

"Finding all of the ingredients will be hard," Sirius pointed out, glancing at the list that James had written. "I haven't even heard of a death's-head hawkmoth before."

Chewing the end of his quill, James nodded. "Remember when Malfoy stole from the Hogwarts supply rooms to make the Draught of Living Death? I'm starting to see the appeal."

"We won't have to steal anything, will we?" Peter objected, sitting up again.

"Who knows?" James answered, frowning. "I don't know where else we'd find all the ingredients."

"Don't forget, the first trip to Hogsmeade is in a couple of weeks," Sirius told him, looking back down at _Advanced Self-Manipulation_. "If need be, Peter can distract Remus while we buy some items from one of the apothecaries."

"Why do I always have to distract him?" Peter whined.

"Because I said so," Sirius answered mercilessly, turning a page. "Besides, you did beautifully with him this morning. We would've never gotten out of our room if you hadn't stepped in."

Peter settled back into his chair with a smile, and James silently acknowledged that Sirius was probably telling the truth; Remus had grown wary when they tried to slip out on the pretext of asking Professor Kettleburn more about Horklumps, and with a rare burst of quick thinking, Peter had convinced Remus to take his own homework down to one of the castle's far courtyards—which was, coincidentally, on the opposite end of the castle from the library. Before James could voice his approval of Sirius' plan, however, Mr. Jaune's upturned nose suddenly appeared from around the corner of a nearby bookshelf, and James quickly lifted _Animagi in the Making_ up to his face to conceal its sullied margins.

During the next week, James' free time was split between reading with his roommates and practicing for the upcoming Quidditch match. Each grueling training session was made bearable only when Michael and Raul treated the rest of the team to bags of Drooble's Best Blowing Gum afterwards, which helped to relieve their apprehension. Just a few weeks prior, the whole school had witnessed the close match between Ravenclaw and Slytherin, eventually ending in the latter's victory, and Morgan had seemed a little unnerved by both teams' skill. All the Gryffindor players were exhausted by the strict regimen Morgan set up, the Captain seemingly most of all, but she kept pushing them harder each afternoon. Michael had finally finished his theory readings, and Morgan continually grilled the team on her drawings to make sure that their memories had not failed them. As Rudolph King, one of James' fellow Chasers, so often reminded the others, they would not regret the time they spent looking over the tactical sketches once the day of the match finally arrived.

The evening before the game, James sat on his four-poster and carefully examined his two-way mirror while Sirius held the matching pair high above his head, the upper half of his body sticking out of their dormitory window. Angling his mirror downwards as Peter watched and nibbled his fingernails, Sirius craned his neck to look back at James.

"Do you see them yet?"

"Just a little higher!" James urged, making his friend groan as he hoisted himself higher up, extending the reach of his arm and pointing the mirror down at the Quidditch pitch in the distance.

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Peter asked as Sirius wobbled on the windowsill.

"Wait, I think I can see it!" James exclaimed. "Tilt it down just a bit—there it is! Hold it steady!"

Face contorted in concentration, Sirius gritted his teeth as James studied the tiny figures reflected on his mirror, all mounted on minuscule brooms. Narrowing his eyes, James frowned at the quick movements of the Hufflepuff team, all practicing for the next day's showdown against Gryffindor.

"Seen enough yet?" Sirius asked with a hiss between his clenched teeth.

"Yeah, that's enough," James answered, and Sirius hurriedly clambered down from the windowsill.

"How did they look?" Peter interrogated, rushing to James' side as soon as Sirius had dropped to safety.

"Eh, they're nothing we can't handle," James told him, brushing the air with his hand. "There's no need to worry."

"You didn't sound so confident before I risked falling and breaking my neck," Sirius commented with a raise of his eyebrow.

"It's just the pre-match jitters, that's all!" James protested.

"Funny, I wouldn't have thought that you get them," Sirius countered, but the opening of the door silenced him as Remus entered, having returned from the library.

"It's freezing in here! Why is the window open?" Remus complained as his roommates jumped, and James quickly slipped his mirror into his pocket.

Sliding the window shut for Remus, Sirius grinned at James and said, "Someone's having the pre-match jitters." Crossing his eyes at him, James folded his arms as Remus turned to the others with a downcast expression.

"I'm sorry that I have to miss the game," he told James, his eyes on the floor. "If the full moon wasn't coming soon, I would—well, I just hate to miss your first match, that's all."

"Don't worry about it!" James told him, sitting upright. "It's not like you can help it!"

"We'll tell you about the match play-by-play," Sirius promised. "It'll be like you were sitting there with us!"

Smiling weakly, Remus gathered a few of his belongings and placed them in his suitcase before bidding farewell for the weekend, whereupon the others promptly pulled out the chest containing _Animagi in the Making_ from under Sirius' four-poster. After a late night of reading, James stood in the Quidditch locker rooms with the rest of his teammates, listening to the buzz of the crowd outside. Each holding their own broomsticks, the players did not speak as Joseph slowly wrung out the hem of his shirt, which was still wet from the rainy walk from the castle. Having refused to dissipate after starting up overnight, the pounding rain echoed around the dry interior of the room almost as loudly as the murmuring of the spectators. The only two of James' teammates who seemed unconcerned with both the chattering of the students and the heavy precipitation were King, who stood with his arms crossed impassively in front of him, and Morgan, who finally stopped her pacing to face the others with her hands clasped behind her back.

"Do you all remember page forty-six, Beaters' Block?" she interrogated.

"No, I don't think so," Raul replied. "Could we maybe go over it for a twelfth time?"

Silencing him with a glare that could knock a Horklump out cold, Morgan slammed the end of her broomstick on the floor and commanded the team's attention. "This is my last year as your Captain, boys, and I want it to end well. Do I have your support, or don't I?"

Immediately, the players all voiced their affirmation, and Raul shrugged apologetically. "Sorry, it's just that you've been training us so hard. I don't have a doubt that we'll win today," he added confidently, and the others nodded.

"We've got Hufflepuff, no problem!" Frank affirmed. "They at least play a fair game every time."

"Yeah, I don't know why you're so worked up," Michael told Morgan, patting her back before exiting onto the field. "You're the best Captain we could ask for!"

"Let's hope I am," Morgan muttered, meaning for her words to die out before anyone else could hear, but James caught her dismal tone before walking out onto the pitch.

Once outside, Morgan replaced her furrowed brow with her usual determined stare, which, although far from a confident smile, encouraged the Gryffindor spectators into a rousing cheer as she approached the Hufflepuff Captain. James spotted Instructor Zunderfield reach for his whistle while Morgan and Violet Summerpine shook hands, but his glasses were suddenly drenched by an onslaught of pouring rain, and everything within his vision started to swim. Taking off his glasses, James attempted to wipe them dry on his shirt, but the wet fabric only worsened his problem. Concerned, he was about to wave down Zunderfield when the ringleted wizard gave a sharp trill on his whistle, signaling the start of the game. Fumbling with his glasses, James barely had time to place them back on his nose before rising into position across from the other team's Chasers.

"The other side, James!" Frank yelled at him, pointing to his right with an annoyed expression as James attempted to fly in King's place. Quickly adjusting, James blinked through the rain and tried to make out the Hufflepuff Chaser in front of him. Her features blurred, and he shook his head to send the raindrops in his hair flying off his face.

Again, Zunderfield's whistle made James start, and he dropped towards the newly-released Quaffle alongside the other Chasers. Frank reached it first, and he sent it backwards with a flick of his wrist straight into James' chest. Unprepared for the impact, James grunted and fumbled for the ball, watching as it slipped out of his fingers and hurtled to the Hufflepuff Chaser below.

"James, what's the matter with you?" Frank demanded before rushing after the Hufflepuffs.

"It looks like Hufflepuff is starting with the Quaffle!" Eric Thompson, the student commentator, narrated after a short chuckle. "Brown is diving now—"

No sooner had Thompson started speaking than the pouring rain drowned out his voice, and James quickly zipped after Frank, desperately trying to make out the opposition from his own teammates. Once he had managed to catch up to the other players, he accidentally bumped into King's shoulder and slowed both of them down long enough to give the other team a solid lead. Far ahead of his teammates, Frank intercepted the Quaffle as one of the Hufflepuffs passed it, and he threw the ball to an enemy Chaser behind him instead of King, whereupon she soon scored against Joseph from his position in front of the goalposts.

Instantly, half of the stadium erupted into applause, and James frantically wiped at his glasses with his sleeve while the flying rain hissed past his ears. He chanced a glance over at Morgan, but he could not even make out her water-soaked ponytail, let alone her undoubtedly furious expression. Grimacing, he flew back to join the others as the Quaffle came back into play, but he resolved to stay a few meters behind the other Chasers in order not to interfere with his teammates again.

After a few more blurry plays, it became clear that Frank and King were missing James' support, and the crowd began to shout encouragement over the thundering rain.

"COME ON, GRYFFINDOR!" Hagrid cheered from the stands, but his was the only voice loud enough to pick out. To James' right, Frank started waving in Morgan's direction, clearly hoping that she would call a time-out, but she took no notice through the sheeting rain. When Hufflepuff scored thrice more, Frank and King flew over to James before the game could resume.

"What's going on, James?" Frank yelled over a distant thunderclap. "What's the matter?"

"I can't see anything!" James cried back as loudly as he could, pointing at his glasses in what he hoped was an obvious pantomime. "The rain's fogged up my glasses!"

Sharing a glance, Frank and King finally seemed to grasp James' predicament. "Can't you play without them?" Frank finally shouted back.

Feeling the same irritation that everyone with permanently impaired vision feels when asked to ride a broomstick without his glasses, James felt his insides bubble. "That would make things even worse!"

"Well, you need to figure out a way to help us out there!" King yelled. "We're at a serious disadvantage without our third player!"

"And I'm at a serious disadvantage without my eyesight!" James retorted. "I'll only get in the way if I try to help!"

Before any of the others could respond, Zunderfield's whistle blew again, and they had to break up and let King to take possession of the Quaffle. Trying to suppress his frustration, James followed his teammates more tightly as they flew back into the fray, the opposing Chasers trailing behind them a bit too closely for his liking. Watching Frank as he matched King's speed, James came to the sudden realization that his disadvantage was only useful for one thing; with a swerve to the left, he stopped the first Hufflepuff Chaser in her tracks as the others jerked to the right to avoid them, and King flew ahead unbothered to the goalposts. James could almost hear the pitch grow quiet through the rain as the spectators took in a collective breath, but the noise returned a moment later in the form of a tremendous groan when the Hufflepuff Keeper blocked King's shot.

"The Quaffle's in!" For the first time since the start of the match, James heard Thompson speak from the commentator's box, and a confused murmur arose from the crowd. "No? Didn't it go through?" Pausing, Thompson waited as Professor McGonagall, pointed witch's hat pulled protectively over her ears against the precipitation, leaned down and yelled something into his ear. "Oh, it didn't go through after all. My bad. Sorry, everyone! I can't see anything through this bloody rain . . ."

When McGonagall began to berate him for his language, another gust of wind drowned out all other sound, but James caught Frank's grin as he passed by and held out his fists towards him. After a moment, James realized that Frank must have been giving him a double thumbs-up, and he returned the gesture before a black sphere hurtled centimeters from his face. Jerking sharply to the side, James almost slipped off his broom, but he grabbed it just in time to steady himself as the other Chasers scattered to avoid the Bludger. Giving an unhappy grunt, James struggled back on top of his Airwake and flew unsteadily after the other players.

When he finally managed to catch up, Hufflepuff had scored again, and he tried to block the Hufflepuff Chasers from following Frank and King in the other direction. Unfortunately, he found his task much harder with his broom handle soaked to the core after his near-fall, and he almost slipped off several more times before finally giving up and staying a short distance from the other Chasers. Still unable to see clearly, he watched the players fly back and forth before finally deciding to take Frank's advice and ripping off his glasses. Placing them in his pocket, he bobbed cautiously towards his teammates on the other side of the field while squinting uncomfortably. As he approached, one of the Hufflepuffs faked a shot at the goalposts before passing it downwards, where Frank intercepted the Quaffle and turned around. Racing in the other direction, he threw it to King, and James, still the farthest back, was the first to reach the scoring zone.

"Over here!" James beckoned to King, confident at last that he could make the shot.

Without pausing to question him, King lobbed the ball his way, and James managed to keep the slippery Quaffle within his grip as he dove for the left hoop, the golden circle shimmering in his vision. Throwing with all his might, he did not dare to slow down as he chucked the Quaffle towards the wavering circle, hoping that the Keeper would not make it to the ball in time.

With a roar of approval, the crowd jumped up to cheer as the Quaffle sailed past the Keeper's darting lunge and into the hoop, traveling a few seconds faster than James. Letting out a short cry of triumph, James shot his fist into the air, but he did not see the base of the goalpost until it was too late. Hitting his forehead against it at full speed, he felt a surge of pain in his temple, and he lost hold of his Airwake in his shock. The last thing he remembered was the lifting sensation in his stomach as he began to fall, blackness gripping him as he lost all consciousness.

* * *

Later, James opened his eyes and gave a small groan as his forehead erupted into a serious of vicious throbs. Staring straight ahead, he frowned at the strangely blurry sight of several faces looking down at him. For some reason, the sky seemed so . . . white. So clean.

"Who has his glasses?" someone asked, and James recognized at once the sound of his father's voice.

"They're right here," another answered, and James saw Sirius' face come into focus as his glasses were forced onto his face. One of the end-pieces caught on his ear, and James tried to lift his hand to move it into place when he discovered that he could barely move without prompting the pounding ache in his head.

"Why can't I move?" he whispered hoarsely, surprised by the weakness of his voice, and he squinted to see the faces of his companions.

Above him, both of his parents looked on with pressed lips as the Quidditch team stood further back, accompanied by Sirius and Peter. With a jolt of surprise, James recognized Bertha Jorkins standing between Morgan and King, watching James with little interest on her pudgy, acne-ridden face. Although not entirely pleased to see the nosy seventh-year, James wondered what she and another of Morgan's roommates, Adah Kahtri, were doing with the Quidditch team; they normally left Morgan alone while she was Captaining, and their presence worried him. Next to Frank stood a tall, wrinkled woman with a monstrous red handbag, and she sniffed as she looked down at James.

"That pole knocked you out pretty good, didn't it?" she asked, causing Frank to send her a small frown.

"Mum, give him a break, will you?" he berated patiently. "His ribs are probably aching."

Glancing back at James, Frank gave a shrug while Mrs. Longbottom shook her head. "Well, I think it should be pretty obvious why he can't move," she insisted. "A knock to the head shouldn't have ridden him of all reason."

"Are you feeling all right, James?" James' mother inquired, leaning down and putting a hand to his forehead. Although she meant well, the action sent a throbbing pain shooting through James' skull, and he attempted to sit up only to crash back down on what he now realized was a mattress when his ribs screamed at him in agony.

"Where's Remus?" James asked, glancing around the gathered people and missing his roommate.

"He's still gone, remember?" Peter reminded him. "It's only been a few hours since you were brought to the hospital wing."

"A few hou—" James began, attempting to bolt upright again, but he broke off at the intense pain in his torso. Simply contenting to turn his head, he looked at his teammates where they were standing to the side, their hair still sopping wet. "What happened? Did we win?"

Staring at the floor, Michael scuffed his foot on the ground. "Nah, we didn't manage it."

"But . . ." James trailed off before turning to Morgan. "You didn't catch the Snitch?"

"Of course I caught it," she answered sharply, giving him a hard look. "We were just so far behind that I decided to end the game before it got any worse."

"I'm so sorry, Morgan—"

"Save it," she interrupted, lifting a hand to her forehead to rub it. "Rudolph and Frank told me that you were having trouble seeing. I should have thought about your glasses before the match."

"It wasn't your fault," Adah assured Morgan, patting her on the shoulder.

"She's right," King agreed in his deep voice. "None of us were thinking."

Shaking her head, Morgan shielded her face with her hand and took a deep breath. Adah and Jorkins exchanged a glance, but Morgan looked up again just after, eyes afire. "We still only lost by 400 points. There's a chance that we can still come back from this. The Slytherin-Ravenclaw match was a close game, wasn't it? We're still in the running."

" _Only_ 400 points?" Jorkins spoke up nasally. "How do you figure we'll come back from that?"

Scowling, Morgan opened her mouth to spit out a reply, but King jumped in before she could speak. "We'll all put our time in. We're not going to give up without trying."

Turning red, Jorkins lowered her pudgy face as the rest of the team voiced their agreement. "Yeah, we can't just quit!" Raul agreed. "We still have two games left! Who knows? Maybe we can still pull ahead."

"At the very least, we shouldn't end in dead last," Joseph said, nodding.

"We'll jump straight back to training in the morning," Morgan told the others, though she quickly raised her hand to stop James from speaking. "I don't mean you, of course, James. Get some rest and join us when you're fully recovered. As for the rest of us, we're not giving up that easily."

"See you later, James!" Michael told him, waving. Only Frank stayed behind with Mrs. Longbottom as the team marched purposefully across the hospital wing, Adah and Jorkins hurrying to keep pace with them.

Running ahead to catch King's attention, Jorkins grabbed ahold of his arm and gushed, "You're right, of course; I wasn't _really_ thinking that you would give up yet! It's so admirable of you to keep trying! I'll be out on the pitch during every practice to show my support, you can count on me! What will you be doing later this week? Besides practicing, I mean, which I know you're just _dying_ to do . . ."

"Blimey, I don't pity them," Sirius commented as the team left. "I'd hate to be under Morgan's thumb right now."

"Hey, don't rub it in!" Frank told him, and Mrs. Longbottom gave him a sharp look.

"No pain, no gain, Franklin!" she admonished him, placing her bony hands on her angular hips. "There are dozens of students who would trade their right arm to be in your position! You're not complaining, are you?"

"Of course not, Mum."

"I, for one, think that your Captain has enough grit to play the entire game on her own!" Mrs. Longbottom praised.

"That's physically impossible, Mum," Frank said, but James' father cut them off before they could continue.

"Are you doing all right, son?" he asked James, a single, sympathetic line of worry creasing his shining brow. "We came down to see you as soon as you fell, and your head was purple for quite some time."

"We shouldn't have lost," James replied, letting his head fall to the side.

"James, dear, that's not your fault!" his mother insisted, rubbing his arm. "If anything, you should be blaming the weather."

"Yeah, it's like Morgan said: the other match was a close game," Sirius encouraged. "None of the teams are really sunk for the Cup yet."

"That's all the more reason to train harder!" James countered. "When did Madam Pomfrey say I could go, anyway?"

As if in answer, the matron suddenly appeared over his cot and bent down to feel his forehead. "He's awake now, is he?"

"Ow!" James yelped when her fingers met his throbbing skull, and she clicked her tongue.

"A bottle of Katinski's Head Tonic, I should think," Madam Pomfrey spoke to herself, straightening. After rushing to the far wall of the hospital wing, she came back with two vials of liquid and pulled on a pair of dragon-skin gloves.

"Pull up his shirt," she told Sirius and Peter while the others backed away. Obeying, James' roommates revealed his bare chest for Madam Pomfrey, who poured some of the liquid onto her palm and rubbed his ribcage.

"It burns!" James protested, trying his best to pull away as the oil melted into his skin like acid.

"That's how you know it's working," Madam Pomfrey told him, putting another spot of the medicine onto her gloved hand. When she started rubbing his chest again, James gripped the sides of his cot to keep from crying out in pain, and his parents looked on with creased brows as the matron spoke again. "If you want a speedy recovery, I need to apply this every two hours."

Once Madam Pomfrey had finished, James relaxed with a sigh while she shook a small bottle of Katinski's Head Tonic. "You'll need to drink a spoonful of this before going to sleep, and quite possibly a full cup for your first dose."

"Let me guess: it tastes foul," James conjectured while she conjured a glass with her wand and poured the liquid inside.

"It's lemon-flavored," she told him rather harshly, and James accepted the glass with a subdued gesture. Draining its warm contents, he found the liquid rather soothing on its way down his throat.

"Sorry, it's not bad," James apologized, giving her the glass and wiping his mouth with his sleeve. The action no longer hurt his head so much. Taking the cup with a curt nod, Madam Pomfrey placed it on the small table beside his cot while he spoke again. "How long do I have to stay here?"

"You'll need to stay for a few days until your ribs heal completely," she answered, and she turned to shoo the spectators away. "You'd best leave now: he's going to need plenty of rest."

"We'll see you later, mate," Sirius told James, turning to leave with Peter.

"Make sure to send Hardwin when you've recovered," James' father told his son before Mrs. Longbottom shook her finger at James.

"And let me know if Franklin ever complains about playing Chaser! I'll have to request to have him taken off the team if he ever takes the position for granted!"

"She'll never do it," Frank whispered to James as she stalked down the hospital wing, heels clicking. "She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she did!"

When Frank followed the others, James wordlessly watched Madam Pomfrey move about the room for the remainder of the evening. The noiselessness of the room caused him to drift off to sleep rather quickly, though Madam Pomfrey awoke him every two hours to apply the burning salve. Still, with help from Katinski's Head Tonic, James' first night passed almost painlessly amid the quiet murmuring of other infirmed students and the comfort of his warm cot.


	7. Dogweed and Deathcap

**Dogweed and Deathcap**

Every couple of hours, James put up with the acid-like medicine that Madam Pomfrey applied to his chest, wishing that he could join his teammates on the Quidditch pitch instead. Stuck in the hospital wing for all but a few minutes per day, he took short walks up and down the hallway to exercise his legs while staring out at the windy school grounds and watching his teammates practice. Once the weekend had passed and classes began again, Sirius and Peter gave James their notes so he could keep up with homework while still bed-ridden, and the distraction helped keep his mind off of the recent Quidditch match. However, more importantly, Sirius and Peter would sneak James information about Animagi that they had discovered without him. Due to the public nature of the hospital wing, they could not discuss their findings openly, especially when Madam Pomfrey was present, but they managed to sneak in a few hushed conversations when the matron disappeared in the back room.

"I found an excerpt on Mandrakes in _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_ ," Sirius whispered to James during one of his visits, slipping him the textbook. Opening it, James flipped through the book until he found the marked page.

"Their leaves are supposed to be used in the Animagus Potion," Peter explained, "but they're really rare. I've never seen any Mandrakes in Diagon Alley before."

"Hogsmeade is sure to have them!" James assured the others. "There are dozens of wizarding shops there."

"Just like Diagon Alley," Sirius pointed out under his breath, but James shook his head.

"We'll find what we need, I'm sure of it!" he promised. "The trip is this weekend, and Madam Pomfrey says that I'll be out by then. Before Saturday, you should double-check that you've written down all the potion ingredients."

"I don't see why you can't do any of the work!" Sirius complained when James shoved the book back into his arms. "You've been sitting in bed all day!"

"It hurts to read," James grunted, clutching his stomach and giving an exaggerated moan. After sharing an unenthused look with Peter, Sirius dumped _One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi_ back onto the cot and turned around.

"Ouch! Hey!" James exclaimed when the book fell on his bruised ribs, but his roommates were already running towards the door of the hospital wing.

Shoving the book aside with a glare, James decided to put off his assignment until nightfall, when he could read without the fear of Madam Pomfrey questioning him. By the next morning, Remus had returned, but Sirius and Peter said that he was still weak from the full moon and now had a dozen or more assignments to catch up on, prohibiting him from visiting James. Early on Saturday morning, however, all three of James' roommates arrived to witness his release from the hospital wing just in time for the trip to Hogsmeade.

Brow furrowed, Remus was the first to reach James' bedside, where Madam Pomfrey was examining his ribs on last time. "Are you all right?" Remus asked, glancing down at James' bandages.

"Don't let these fool you," James told him, standing still as the school matron prodded him with her wand. "Madam Pomfrey says I'm all better now. She was just about to take these off. In fact, I should be asking how you're doing."

"I'm all right," Remus replied with a wan smile, and Madam Pomfrey vanished James' bandages with a flick of her wrist. Quickly pulling his shirt on, James started for the door with his roommates.

"I don't want to see you in here again on account of a little rain," Madam Pomfrey warned him, and he waved a thank-you over his shoulder.

"It's a shame about the match," Remus said as he and the others rounded the corner. "I know a spell that might have helped to make your glasses waterproof."

"If only you had been there to help," James moaned. "You'll have to teach it to me before my next match. I'd rather take detention with Professor Slughorn than go through that again."

"You'll have to thank me for not telling Morgan when you'd get out," Sirius told him. "If she knew that you had recovered, she might have called off the trip to Hogsmeade to practice."

"Yeah, we can't have that happen, can we?" James responded, winking as he nudged Sirius in the side.

Although Remus frowned in their direction, he seemed to forget his confusion when they met Filch at the door to the castle and handed him their permission forms for examination. While Remus was distracted, Sirius prodded James and pulled out a thin sheet of shimmering fabric from his robes' pocket, displaying the Invisibility Cloak; grinning, James gave him a thumbs-up before showing Filch his form with an innocent beam.

Teeming with wild bushes after the previous weekend's heavy rain, the road to Hogsmeade was scattered with students making their way to the wizarding town, and James noted with interest the occasional jack-o'-lantern sitting on the path for the approaching Halloween celebration. As he and his friends neared Hogsmeade, the decorations became more and more concentrated; flame-resistant candles, glowing crucifixes, and even a live ghoul could be seen lurking between the shop windows. Moreover, the entire ghostly population of Hogwarts seemed to be visiting for the weekend, and James spotted the Bloody Baron as he swooped down from a dark rooftop and scared a young boy on the street.

"I don't remember it being nearly this dark the last time we visited," Sirius remarked to James as the boys strolled down the main street. "The streets seem smaller this way."

"What do you mean, 'the last time you visited?'" Remus asked him. "This is the first time any of us have been here. Isn't it?" he eventually added, narrowing his eyes.

"Er—of course," Sirius corrected, he and James sharing a quick glance. "Oh, look over there! It's Honeydukes!" he exclaimed when Remus continued to eye them, and he took off running down the street.

When the others had caught up, the vast selection of Halloween-themed candy distracted Remus from any further questions, and the four roommates spent the next several minutes searching through glass containers full of sweets. When they finally emerged from the store a half-hour later carrying their purchases, Sirius opened a box of Chocolate Cauldrons and tossed the lid onto the ground, clearing this throat.

"So, you're going to show us the Shrieking Shack, right?" he asked Remus through a mouthful of chocolate.

Not having expected the question, Remus almost dropped the Bat Pop he was sucking on when he opened his mouth to reply. "No, why would I do that?"

"But we want to see it!" James pleaded, and even Peter nodded fervently in agreement.

"We can't even get into it from Hogsmeade," Remus told them, and they all slouched. "Besides, there's not much to see."

"All right—you can just take us into the Whomping Willow later," Sirius suggested, but Remus shook his head.

"It would be too dangerous if someone saw us," he disagreed. "You aren't even supposed to know how to get in."

"Then we'll do it at night," James insisted.

"I'm not about to sneak out after hours just so you can see where I transform," Remus admonished. "Like I told you, there's really nothing to see."

Deciding that he would not change his mind, the others did not protest as they continued down the street and glanced at the different buildings. Gesturing at a particularly spooky exterior with a pair of wax vampires guarding the door, James turned to the others. "This place doesn't look so bad. Want to stop and check it out?"

The others voiced their agreement, and they were soon greeted with the jingling bell and a blast of warm air from a crackling fireplace. Tables covered the single room, each occupied by a merry circle of students with mugs of frothy liquid in their hands. Meant to mimic the haunting decorations outside, the ceiling was lighted only by a few floating lanterns, all painted with simple, horror-stricken faces. To the left, a curvy witch with a pair of cauldron earrings looked up at them from behind the bar as she polished a glass.

"It's a bit crowded in here," Remus noted, speaking loudly to be heard over the chattering of the patrons. After glancing around for a moment, James pointed at a round table near the back of the room with four empty chairs.

"There's room over there," he pointed out, but a pair of wizards sat down as he spoke, taking up half of the table. Turning to the others, James shrugged. "I'll tell you what: Sirius and I will grab the other seats and wait for them to leave. One of us will come and get you when it's empty."

"All right," Remus agreed. "I think I saw a bookstore on the way here, anyway. I'd like to take a look at it."

"And while you're gone, Peter," James added, "you might want to stop by the apothecary to . . . scout out a few things, all right?"

Out of Remus' sight, James slipped Peter the list of ingredients for the Animagus Potion, and Peter sputtered for a moment before accepting it with a sigh and following Remus out. Left alone as the bell above the doorway jingled again, James and Sirius approached the rosy-cheeked witch at the bar and waited as she nodded at them.

"Welcome to the Three Broomsticks Inn," she greeted. "What can I get for you?"

"Two glasses of Firewhiskey and an extra bottle," Sirius answered, nodding at the display behind her.

Throwing her head back, the barmaid laughed. "I think you're a mite too young for that, eh?"

"It was worth a shot," Sirius sighed, shrugging.

"Try the butterbeer," she suggested, moving towards the back wall and extracting two mugs. "There's no better drink in town."

"Could you make that four?" James asked her. "We're waiting for some friends."

Nodding, the barmaid pulled out another two mugs and started mixing together different bottles of liquid, topping each mug with foam in turn.

As she worked, James studied her and chewed his bottom lip. "I think I saw you through the window the last time we were here," he eventually spoke up, and she gave him a sideways glance.

"Really?" she asked. "I don't seem to recall seeing you before, and I think I would have remembered meeting two lads as entertaining as you."

"We were invisible," James responded, and she laughed.

"Well, don't make a habit of it: I want to see you again," she advised them, topping off the last of the butterbeers and pushing them across the counter. After they dropped some coins onto the counter, she reached into a drawer and handed them four toffees.

"On the house," she told them with a smile. "Tell your friends that Madam Rosmerta said hello."

Grinning, James and Sirius each took two of the butterbeers and headed for the table in the back of the room as Madam Rosmerta continued polishing used glasses. Squeezing between the tables, they made it to their destination and seated themselves across from the two wizards, neither of who acknowledged the newcomers as they continued conversing seriously.

"I like her," Sirius commented, nodding back at Madam Rosmerta as he popped a toffee into his mouth. "If only Honeydukes handed out free samples like that. I'd never have to sneak Chocolate Frogs off of Regulus aga—"

Just then, one of he wizards next to them threw out his arm, and Sirius had to jerk back to avoid getting hit in the head. Throwing the oblivious man a glare, he chewed on his toffee silently while the wizard gave an involuntary gasp.

"Twen'y fousand—" Breaking off from his exclamation, he leaned towards his companion and corrected his volume. "O—of course! Wot's the date you want to sign?"

Something about the man's shockingly purple top hat seemed to jog James' memory, and he wondered where he might have seen the wizard before as his partner responded. "I'll sign it as soon as you're ready to relinquish the property," he stated with a nonchalance bordering on indifference. Significantly taller and larger than the hatted wizard, he leaned back in his chair and lazily traced curlicues in the air with his cigar. The sheer width of his body strained against his black robes, and James thought that he might break the chair with his bulk.

"And the dough?" the slighter man asked after a slight hesitation, his hands quickly turning purple as he wrung them.

Taking in a long puff from his cigar, the larger man exhaled a wispy rendition of a bull, which charged out of the smoke with a roar before transforming into a small calf and disintegrating into mist. "The first payment will get to you by the end of the month."

Beaming, the purple-clad wizard clapped his hands. "Smashin'! You don't know 'ow much of a blessin' you is, Grayson—I 'as tried to sell Dogweed and Deathcap for close to a year now, but the clients would all skive off the ol' bread and 'oney, do you know wha' I mean?"

"That won't be a problem," the tall wizard, apparently called Grayson, answered, and he stood with a loud creak from his chair. Casually extending his massive hand, he completely enveloped the other wizard's in his grasp and shook it.

"Pleasure doin' business wif—oi!" the smaller man yelped, jerking his fingers free and massaging his palm. Turning away, Grayson blew a leaping tiger with another whiff from his cigar and glanced at James and Sirius briefly before shouldering on his coat.

"Why 'Ogsmeade of all places, anyway?" the hatted wizard asked his companion, pinching one eye shut as he continued to rub his hand.

"Family business," Grayson replied gruffly before striding towards the exit.

"See you later, Abraham!" Madam Rosmerta called after him as he opened the door and stepped into the street. As soon as the bell jingled, the purple-clad wizard snapped upright and huffed.

"Family business, me 'at," he said. "As if 'e'd 'ave any family other den a cat—and an ol' barn tom, at tha'." Suddenly breaking into a gurgled laugh, he clapped his hands and stomped his feet before grabbing his cloak from his chair and rushing towards the door after Grayson.

As the wizard bustled away, Sirius stared after him and took a sip of his butterbeer. "Fancy seeing him again. I guess Remus was right about him being a shopkeeper."

At once, James remembered meeting the excited wizard on the Hogwarts Express, and he snapped his fingers at the realization. "That's who he is! I guess he finally found someone to buy his store."

After his response, the bell to the inn jingled again, and Remus and Peter slipped into the warm interior of the Three Broomsticks and quickly joined James and Sirius at the table. When they had seated themselves, James passed them each a butterbeer.

"That was awfully quick," Sirius noted.

"Remus finished with Tomes and Scrolls, but the apothecary wasn't open," Peter told them, downing a gulp of his warm drink.

"It wasn't?" James asked, a jolt of alarm going down his spine as he shared a glance with Sirius. If they could not get the ingredients for the Animagus Potion in Hogsmeade, where else would they be able to look?

"The sign said that it was closed for renovations or something like that," Peter told them. "It wasn't even decorated for Halloween like the rest of Hogsmeade."

"Why do you want to go to Dogweed and Deathcap, anyway?" Remus inquired.

"Did you say Dogweed and Deathcap?" Sirius demanded, jolting upright.

"That's what the apothecary's called," Remus answered.

"But that must mean that it'll be closed until that other wizard buys the place!" James exclaimed, turning to Sirius.

"And who knows how long that'll be!" Sirius added. "It could be closed for another few months!"

At the others' confused expressions, James explained, "We just saw the wizard from the Hogwarts Express. He was selling the apothecary."

"Maybe we can convince him to let us look around the store quickly," Sirius suggested. "After all, it's not officially sold yet. I bet that the owner hasn't gone far."

"Good idea!" James agreed, and they pushed up from the table while Remus and Peter stared at them in bewilderment.

"Why do you need to visit the apothecary so badly?" Remus protested, but they were already edging their way through the crowd.

"Stay there, okay?" James called over his shoulder, and Peter and Remus looked at each other. "We'll be back soon!"

Once outside, James and Sirius glanced around the street and ignored Nearly-Headless Nick as he floated past them, looking slightly miffed when the boys did not respond to his greeting. Above their heads, a raven cawed loudly from a rooftop, and Sirius pointed to the right.

"He's over there!"

Following Sirius' directions, James hurried to catch up to the purple-clad wizard, who was whistling an upbeat melody to himself as he strutted along. Unaware of the boys tracking him, he stumbled a little when James and Sirius stopped him, and his smile fell immediately.

"Wot's all dis?" he demanded, glancing between James and Sirius with a frown.

"Excuse me, sir," James started, "but weren't you selling Dogweed and Deathcap?"

Still flummoxed, the wizard adjusted his top hat and pulled on his collar. "Tha's righ'—Barnaby Bucklot, proprie'or of over for'y-one different enterprises in Great Bri'ain. Tha's me, 'e is."

"Right," Sirius replied. "We were wondering if we could look around your apothecary for some rare plants."

"Tha's quite impossible," Bucklot told him, shaking his head. "It's closed, you see—needs furder renovations."

"But we really need to find some Mandrake leaves," James insisted. "We wouldn't be a bother. We'd be in and out before you knew it!"

"Sorry, me good lads," Bucklot interjected, turning away with his chin in the air. "I can't be bovered wif givin' you a butcher's when I is in the middle of a transaction. Those is the brass, dey is. You 'as to wait until the store opens."

"But we only—"

"Can't 'old me back now: I 'as got a business mee'ing to get to," Bucklot insisted, pulling out his brass pocket-watch and glancing at its glassy face.

"Weren't you just talking with your buyer?" Sirius pointed out.

"Wha'?" Bucklot demanded, snapping upright suddenly and staring at Sirius. "No, tha's a completely different mat'er altogever! Completely separate! Nofing in common!"

Studying Bucklot's rapidly darting eyes, James pursed his lips. "Right . . . Still, can't you open the store for a few minutes so we can look around? We could even browse the shop after your meeting—we can wait."

"I'm afraid it'll do no good," Bucklot recovered, straightening his collar. "Got fings to do, and it ain't in me policies to open a proper'y in the middle of a sale. Bet'er luck elsewhere, lads."

"But—" James and Sirius protested.

"Cheerio!" Bucklot interrupted, waving over his shoulder without a backwards glance. Deflated, James and Sirius watched him as he set off down the street, warbling cheerfully.

Glancing at his roommate, James asked, "You wouldn't think we'd be able to find that Grayson fellow, would we?"

"Looks like he had places to go," Sirius answered. "Who knows where he is by now?"

"I guess he wouldn't even have the key, anyway," James agreed, sighing.

After a moment's thought, Sirius suggested, "We could always break in."  
"And do what? Do you think the supplies are labeled?"

"There's no harm in trying," Sirius countered. "There's only one more trip to Hogsmeade this year, and it isn't until a couple of months after Christmas. This could be our only chance."

"Let's go check it out before Remus and Peter join us," James agreed, and they began jogging down the town's main street until ducking down an adjoining alley. Pulling out James' Invisibility Cloak, Sirius swung it over the both of them so that they could continue unseen.

At the directions of a few street signs, they turned several corners and continued down a narrow road, dotted with a few residences amid a few small businesses. About halfway down the street, they stopped in front of a musty old building, barely high enough to contain two stories. Like Peter had described, it was the only store not decorated for Halloween, apart from a couple of ravens perched on the rooftop. However, despite the lack of eerie pumpkin-heads and simmering cauldrons, the store somehow looked even darker than the surrounding buildings; James supposed this was due to the lack of light from inside the windows, which were boarded up with large planks of wood. The door, similarly, was nailed shut from the outside.

"Dogweed and Deathcap: closed until further renovations," Sirius read from an overhead sign in a whisper.

Eyeing the wooden boards, James pulled off the Invisibility Cloak to get a better look. "This is going to be a problem. I don't think wood will crumble with the help of a few Unlocking Charms."

Stepping up to the nearest window as he removed the Cloak from his shoulders, Sirius cupped his hands over his eyes and peered through a crack in the boards, the ravens eyeing him with their heads cocked. "I can't see anything," he finally gave up, stepping back. "Do you know any good spells for chopping wood?"

"Even if I did, I'm pretty sure that the neighbors would hear it," James answered, pointing at the other buildings. Feeling his heart drop, he sighed as he glanced at the roof. "As much as I hate to admit it, I think we'll have to try again later."

"I guess you're right," Sirius replied, slumping. As he stepped away to join James, one of the ravens let out a loud caw and jumped into the air, leaving the store looking even lonelier than before.

Together the two boys dragged their feet towards the Three Broomsticks, the Invisibility Cloak stuffed into James' pocket. When they finally made it back to the main street, they found Remus and Peter waiting outside of the inn for them, dripping with what looked like golden water.

"Wilkes and his friends came by our table, so we had to move," Peter explained before the others could ask what had happened.

"You just let them have your spot?" Sirius demanded, immediately bristling.

"Of course not," Remus answered. "I told them that they'd have to wait until we were gone, but they insisted on making a scene. I'm afraid that the butterbeer got a bit . . . dispersed in the process, and Madam Rosmerta kicked us all out."

"Where are they now?" James asked.

"They said something about finding a better inn," he replied, shrugging as he rung out his sleeve. "I'm sorry about your drinks."

"Eh, don't worry about it," James answered. "I'm just glad they got what they deserved, though I still would have liked to have dumped the butterbeer on them myself."

"Don't worry: they got the worst of the spill," Remus told him, smirking slightly. "It was magnificent, really, the way Peter flipped the table."

"It was an accident," Peter explained, blushing. "I jumped when Avery pulled out his wand, and it fell on top of him."

Sirius let out a barking laugh at the image before speaking. "Where to next?"

"I still want to take a look at Zonko's," James piped up.

"But I still haven't seen the Shrieking Shack from the outside," Peter protested, and they all turned to stare at Remus.

"After all that excitement, I'm feeling a bit knackered," he told them all sheepishly, itching the back of his neck. "I think that I'll call it a day and head back."

"You can't just leave in the middle of the day!" James argued. "There's still so much to do!"

"I'm still feeling a bit tired from . . . you know," Remus replied, staring at the ground and scuffing the grass with his toe.

Although his heart fell, James nodded. "All right," he relented. "We might as well all go back, then."

"But—" Sirius and Peter began.

"I don't really need to go to Zonko's after all," James interrupted, slinging his arm around Remus' shoulders and starting down the street. "I already have half a dozen Stink Pellets and a package of Flaring Firecrackers in our room. Besides, it wouldn't be half as fun without you there."

"Really?" Remus asked, smiling.

"Really!" James replied. "You wouldn't believe how bored we all were last week when you were gone. Breaking rules isn't nearly as fun when you're not there telling us not to do it."

"Don't tell me that your ribs weren't the worst thing to happen to you while I was gone," Remus joked as they continued walking.

"Well, you know, I thought that Madam Pomfrey was going to do me in with her medicine," James responded. "Those were about the worst few days of my life . . ."

Glancing at each other, Sirius and Peter suppressed a sigh before trudging after the others loyally. Several minutes later, the four had returned to the castle, entering to find it unusually empty for the afternoon. Even the Gryffindor common room was devoid of students, and Remus and Peter stayed behind for a few moments to hang their wet coats by the fire.

When James entered their room, a furious pattering at the window drew his attention to Hardwin, who was locked outside with a letter grasped in his beak. Rushing to let him inside, James passed Mussmug where she was snoring softly on his four-poster and yanked open the windowpane, allowing his disgruntled Screech owl inside. Ruffling unhappily, Hardwin spat the envelope into James' chest and flapped away towards Sirius, landing on his shoulder.

"What's that you've got there?" Sirius asked James, scratching Hardwin's head.

"A letter from my parents, by the looks of it," James answered, opening it. "I don't know what could be so urgent."

Frowning, he picked a stray raven feather off of his shirt as he read the letter and tossed it onto his four-poster. Jumping up suddenly, Mussmug let out a hiss and leaped off of the mattress, and James turned around to see Remus entering through the doorway just in front of Peter.

"What's that?" Remus inquired, pointing at the letter in James' hand.

"My mum says that you're all going to visit us on Christmas Day!" James announced. "They already cleared it with your parents!"

"Great!" Peter exclaimed, clapping, and Remus smiled at his roommates' grins.

"It's still two months away," he reminded the others, and James shot him a frown.

"We can't help it if we're excited! This is the first Christmas we're all going to spend together!"

"As long as we can go to Oldeman's Candy Store, I'll be happy," Sirius announced, nudging Remus. "Don't worry, there's plenty of chocolate there."

Shaking his head as the others laughed, Remus asked, "Why does everyone think that I'm obsessed with chocolate?"

"Because you are," Sirius responded, and Hardwin took flight again to avoid the pillow that sailed towards Sirius' head. In mere seconds, the other boys had all grabbed their pillows, and the room quickly transformed into a battle ground as they pummeled each other amid their animals' annoyed screeches.


	8. The Third-Year Potions Master

**The Third-Year Potions Master**

During the next few weeks, James, Sirius, and Peter studied _Animagi in the Making_ whenever they could get away from Remus, brainstorming for possible ways to get ahold of Mandrake leaves outside of Hogsmeade. To make sure that their talks went unheard, Sirius would occasionally enchant the bottom of the stairs with an Intruder Charm, although the effort proved more of a nuisance than a help after Gryffindor Tower erupted into bodiless caterwauling for the fifth time. Unfortunately, as December drew closer, they had less and less time to study Human Transfiguration due to their mounting homework before the approaching holidays. To top things off, James was called away several nights a week to meet with the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, making preparations for the game that would take place shortly after they returned from break.

Even though Sirius and Peter had to temporarily cease their perusing of _Animagi in the Making_ for James' sake, James knew that they had reached a standstill, anyway. Without Mandrake leaves, they could not attempt to brew the Animagus Potion, and they had run out of ideas of getting them. Sirius had suggested searching for a local apothecary in Godric's Hollow over Christmas break, but James knew that his parents would grow suspicious if he mentioned school shopping over the holidays. Currently, all of their hope rode on the next trip to Hogsmeade, but Sirius brought up another problem during Arithmancy one day.

"The Animagus Potion is impossibly hard to make," he whispered to James, glancing at Professor Flannegin to see if he would notice his distraction. "It's far more advanced than anything we've made in Potions so far, and . . . well, let's face it . . . Professor Slughorn has never asked us to be in the Slug Club for a reason."

Sighing, James rested his head in his arms. "I know."

"We might stand a chance if Remus could help us," Sirius continued, "but for obvious reasons, he can't. Besides, even he isn't that great at Potions." Leaning back, he put his feet up on his desk thoughtfully. "I can't think of anyone we know who might be able to help us."

"Frank might," James suggested half-heartedly.

Shaking his head, Sirius huffed. "I doubt that he would go so far as to break the law for us. I'd wager a guess that Dill would agree to it, but he can't brew the Cure for Boils to save his life. Or, you know, to cure boils. Slughorn's obviously out of the picture, along with the other professors."

"We could just forget about the whole thing and filch it from Slughorn's office," James offered.

"He probably won't have it—it's not something you make for fun and sell at your local potions supply store," Sirius replied.

Breaking off, Sirius stared at Professor Flannegin as the spectacled wizard turned his narrowed eyes on him. The wizard looked pointedly at Sirius' feet resting on the desk in front of him, but Sirius made no effort to correct his irreverent posture before Flannegin finally turned back around and rapped his wand against the blackboard.

"Using what you've learned from your textbooks, can anyone explain why this equation is not magically sound? I couldn't help but notice that most of you struggled with this on your last homework assignment."

After a lengthy pause, Lily raised her hand. "I figured that it had something to do with the unequal dividends of the number seven, but I still don't completely understand it. Could you please explain it?"

Nodding succinctly, Professor Flannegin took a step away from the board and began pacing. "You're right—it does have to do with the numerical balancing. As you know, seven is the most magically powerful number, and thirteen is often referred to as the 'imperfect' or 'cursed' number. But does anyone know why?"

When no one answered, he told them, "Seven, when doubled, comes out to fourteen, and thirteen is one short of this perfect multiple. Thus, if you move the thirteen to the other side of the equation and divide it in half to neutralize its power," he explained, rearranging the numbers on the board with his wand, "adding one to the six and recombining it with the original thirteen, we come up with a much more stable equation."

Stepping back, he tapped his wand once more on the board, and a few of the Ravenclaws nodded and began scribbling on their notepads. Yawning, James waited for Sirius to raise his hand, as had become his custom every Arithmancy class.

"Yes, Mr. Black?" Professor Flannegin inquired of Sirius, suppressing a sigh as if expecting a clarifying question.

"The period's over," Sirius informed him, and Flannegin blinked before glancing at the grandfather clock positioned in the far corner of the room.

"Oh, I suppose you're right," he admitted, and he raised his voice as the students began gathering their supplies. "Remember to write that essay! It should be no less than two rolls of parchment!"

"Thanks, mate—I didn't think we'd ever escape," James told Sirius on their way out, soon joined by Remus, who was still scratching hurriedly with his quill.

"Do you think you got everything there?" Sirius inquired, looking over Remus' shoulder.

"Just about. I'm writing down that last formula," Remus replied before he recognized the sarcasm in Sirius' tone. Glancing up, he glared at him as Sirius elbowed James and laughed. "Paying attention isn't something to make fun of! Do you two ever take notes?"

"Don't need to if I already know it all," Sirius answered with a shrug. Shaking his head, Remus finished writing and tucked his quill away.

"Well, don't come running to me during exams," he responded. "Can you walk a little faster? Herbology starts in a few minutes."

"Calm down, Remus, we'll get there in plenty of time," James told him, gesturing around the empty hallway. "I thought we'd take a little detour to see if the geranium buds in the courtyard are blooming yet."

Sighing, Remus rolled his eyes as his roommates laughed again. "I'm going to fall behind in my coursework come the next full moon, so I'd prefer it if I made it to all of my classes on time," he pointed out.

"Trust me, you have the highest grade in Herbology out of our whole year," James replied before pausing and tilting his head. "Well, besides Newshod, maybe. She was the only one who wasn't covered in Stinksap after our last lesson. But even so, you're the last person who needs to worry about falling behind."

Despite James' dismissal, the three picked up their pace as they exited the castle, meeting Peter just outside of the greenhouses. Standing at the back of a queue of third-year Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, Peter greeted them as they approached under the watchful gaze of Professor Sprout.

"What's the queue for?" James asked Peter.

"I'm not sure," he answered, glancing back at Professor Sprout. "She hasn't let us enter the greenhouses yet."

"You don't think she'll let us into Greenhouse #3, do you?" Sirius questioned, peering down the line of glass buildings; none of the students in their year had ever been given a lesson beyond the second greenhouse, and the specimens inside only grew more dangerous with each successive conservatory.

The whispering students finally quieted when Professor Sprout signaled for their attention a few minutes later. "Before we begin our class, I want to warn you about the nature of today's subject matter. Does anyone remember the lecture on Mandrakes last year?"

Several of the students nodded, and James, Sirius, and Peter exchanged wide-eyed glances. Continuing on, Sprout explained, "I brought a few fully grown Mandrakes into Greenhouse #3 to show you the process of preparing them for pharmaceutical purposes. However, as you learned last year, the cry of a fully-grown Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it. Therefore, the school requires you to magically plug your ears to avoid any unexpected accidents. Given the danger, I will not purposely unearth any of the Mandrakes, but we need to prepare for the worst, as fully-grown specimens have the strength to tear up soil at will. Does everyone know the Ear-Block Charm?"

Everyone murmured their agreement, and Professor Sprout raised her wand to her head. "Repeat after me," she told them, and the students all drew their wands. " _Sto Auditus_ ," Sprout said, the class repeating the spell on themselves.

Unable to hear the stomping of the others' feet, James followed the other students into the third greenhouse, where they were confronted by three enormous ceramic pots with towering leafy branches inside. The tops of the foliage stood well over Professor Sprout's head, which, although not a particularly impressive feat, still managed to strike awe in the gaping students. As he passed, James was sure that he spotted one of the pots quiver, and a few of the others seemed to catch the movement as well; Rachel Appleworth opened her mouth to voice her concern, but she soon closed it again when she realized that nobody else could hear her and tiptoed slowly in front of James.

Taking her place in the front of the nearest pot, Professor Sprout waved for attention and began miming instructions for the rest of the class, which James determined mostly consisted of standing still and watching while she worked. Grasping one of the largest Mandrake branches, Sprout pulled it taut and lifted a dangerously large, serrated knife, with which she hacked at the base of the stem. In just a few seconds, a golden juice began to flow from the small incision she had made, and Professor Sprout collected the sap in small bottle while motioning for the students to copy her.

Although reluctant to approach the Mandrakes, the class nevertheless stepped forward at her direction and picked up knives of their own, which lay in a small pile at the bases of the pots. As soon as he had claimed a knife, James motioned to Sirius and Peter and hurried to the Mandrake farthest from the door. Unfortunately, before they could cut off the Mandrake's lowest leaves, Alice and a few of the Hufflepuff students joined them around the pot, and they had no choice but to go along with the lesson.

Carving slowly as they contemplated their next actions, James and his roommates shared a questioning glance, and Sirius pointed subtly to his robes' pockets. Nodding, James slowly inched closer to him, and he moved to cut off a few of the Mandrake leaves before the other students looked up. However, he had to let go of the nearest leaf as soon as he grabbed it, because Professor Sprout had already begun to wave for the students to join her along the greenhouse shelves.

As the other students watched Professor Sprout weigh her Mandrake sap on a copper scale, James, Sirius, and Peter gathered near the back of the group. Tilting his head to convey a question, James waited until Peter shrugged at James and covered his face with his hands. Confused, James stared at him until Peter sighed and pulled his robes around his shoulders like a cloak, and James realized that he was asking about his Invisibility Cloak. Shaking his head, James pointed back at the castle visible from the greenhouse windows, and the three of them relapsed into another despairing pause. Finally, Sirius pointed at James and then to the Mandrake plants behind them, adding a hacking motion with his knife. Motioning to Peter, Sirius gave James a thumbs-up and pointed to Sprout. Understanding his meaning, James nodded and slid off towards the front of the greenhouse before Professor Sprout could spot him.

Once he had reached the nearest Mandrake, James ducked behind its expansive stem and started to cut off one of its lowest leaves. The leaf stuck on more tightly than James had expected it to, and he started slicing faster in fear of being caught. In response to his fervid motions, the Mandrake began to quiver, and James quickly backed away as the shaking grew more violent with each passing moment. In another few seconds, a giant root had burst out from its confinement, and it lashed out at James as he jumped back and released his knife. Mouth open wide, James stared up at the Mandrake as it climbed out of its gigantic pot, revealing four gnarly, limb-like roots. Just beneath the plant's leafy headdress, a mouth-like hole opened in an inaudible screech, and the Mandrakes on either side began to rustle in their pots.

Still oblivious to the growing danger, the other students watched Professor Sprout empty her jar of sap at the other end of the greenhouse. After another moment, Sirius looked over his shoulder to check on James, and he nearly bowled Peter over with an abrupt, backwards leap. When the students next to Sirius turned to him with matching frowns, they in turn spotted the unearthed Mandrake and reacted even more wildly, bringing the whole class to a soundless uproar. Finally looking up as well, Professor Sprout let out a silent gasp and rushed through the panicked students to stop the largest of the three Mandrakes from climbing out of its pot.

Taking his opportunity while Sprout blasted a series of bright blue spells at the plants, James scrambled out of the way and made it back to Sirius and Peter, panting heavily. Although content that no one had seen him in the chaos, he avoided his roommates' eyes when they looked his way; frowning, Sirius and Peter waited while Professor Sprout fought the Mandrakes back into their pots and covered them up with dirt.

Once Sprout had finished, Rachel pressed her hands together and pointed towards the greenhouse door, but the professor shook her head and prodded the Mandrake next to her. Everyone gasped noiselessly, but the plant did not even shiver at the provocation. Walking back towards the shelves with a smug smile, Professor Sprout ignored the students' slumped shoulders and carried on with the lesson.

When the period ended, James exited the greenhouse with the rest of the relieved students, but Sprout had the class remove the Ear-Blocking Charm before they could head back towards the castle. "Remember, I want an essay about the medicinal uses of Mandrakes turned in by the end of the week, and don't forget to give me a list of potions they're useful for," she told them, and half of the students groaned. Sharing another wistful look, James, Sirius, and Peter turned away and started walking back to the castle with the rest of their classmates.

"Can you believe her?" Hillary asked her friends. "She can be worse than Professor Kettleburn!"

"At least the homework's not hard," Lily comforted, and the other girls stared at her.

"Not hard?" Hillary exclaimed. "We learned about Mandrakes a year ago, and I hardly remember anything about them!"

"I'm sure that you remember learning about the Mandrake Elixir!" Lily corrected, beginning to count down on her fingers. "There's also the Restorative Draught, the Polydactyl Potion, and the Everlasting Inkwell, not to mention the countless other medicinal potions that use Mandrake leaves."

"I think you've been paying too much attention to Professor Slughorn," Alice told her. "Soon you might start bleeding Pepperup Potion from your ears."

"Hey, I'm not the one mooning over Professor Val!" Lily retorted, and she let out a laugh. "If you go to her office once more for 'homework advice,' I'm going to have to request an end to her stories."

Round face flushing, Alice objected, "It's not a bad thing to learn more about Aurors, is it? Their line of work is just so interesting . . ."

Slowing down suddenly, Sirius said, "James, I think I left something behind at the greenhouse. Do you mind waiting for me?"

Running a hand through his hair as he turned around, James followed his friend away from the others as Remus and Peter waved goodbye. As soon as they were out of earshot, Sirius turned to James with a grin.

"Never mind what happened in class—I know who can make the Animagus Potion for us!" he said, and James leaned forward.

"Who?"

"Evans, of course!" he answered, pointing back at the group of students walking towards the castle. "I can't believe we didn't see it before! The answer's been right in front of our faces this whole time!"

"Evans?" James exclaimed, recoiling. "You must be off your rocker, mate! If she knew what we were up to, she'd be about the furthest thing from help we could get!"

"I'm not saying that getting her to help is going to be easy, but it's the only chance we've got," Sirius insisted. "Think about it—she's the only one in our year who's in the Slug Club besides Snape, and she only lives a stairway away from us! I'm sure that she'd be able to hide it in a place where only we could get to it." Grinning at himself, he added, "It's so genius, I can't believe I only thought of it now!"

"But you're forgetting the most important part!" James argued. "How do we get Evans to make a potion that can turn us, three people she won't talk to if she can help it, into wild animals so that we can run around with a werewolf during the full moon?"

"I'm not exactly sure yet," Sirius admitted, "but we'll just have to figure it out. After all, we have plenty of time to convince her. Who knows how long it'll be before we can sneak some Mandrake leaves out of the greenhouses?" When James continued to frown deeply at him, Sirius prodded, "You've at least got to admit that Evans is the only person who could do it."

Scratching the back of his head, James probed his mind for a better alternative and found none. Giving up, he shrugged and let out a sigh. "Okay, so I can't think of anyone better, but that doesn't mean she'll do it."

"Just promise me that you'll try to convince her," Sirius insisted.

"You're mental."

"Do you promise, or don't you?"

Fighting him for as long as he could bear, James glared into Sirius' unrelenting gaze. Finally, upon seeing no way out, he lowered his gaze and shook his head. "Fine, I promise. But if she rats us out, don't say I didn't warn you."

"I'd do nothing of the sort, mate," Sirius replied, giving him a beam as he patted his shoulder. Glowering, James shrugged him off, but Sirius kept his smile as he turned back around. "Now, to find a way to convince her!"

Rubbing the back of his head, James glared at his friend for a moment before dragging his feet after him. Exhaling, he thought of Lily and wondered if they knew what they were getting themselves into.


	9. Blood Sovereignty

**Blood Sovereignty**

James and Sirius thought long and hard about how to convince Lily to make the Animagus Potion, but none of their ideas seemed to lead anywhere. When they told Peter about their plan, he had suggested to lie about the potion's purpose, but James knew that Lily was too smart to be fooled by a simple name-change. In fact, it was only a few days before the holidays when they finally got an idea during Care of Magical Creatures, surprisingly enough. Hagrid had brought Professor Kettleburn a Granian to run around the confines of the fence, and the students appeared quite taken with the striking winged horse, the girls in particular.

"Maybe that's it," Sirius commented, leaning against the fence railing as he watched the Granian gallop across the field. As it ripped past at a speed far too fast for a normal horse, Lily and a few of the other girls let out gasps of pleasure and pointed at its beautiful mane of hair. "We can't just waltz up and ask Evans to make the potion without buttering her up a little. We'll have to get on her good side first."

"And how are we going to do that?" Peter questioned as the Granian bolted in the other direction, startling Snape and making him stumble away from the railing. Situated near the fence, Professor Kettleburn and Hagrid paid him no attention as they chatted together, Hagrid throwing admiring glances towards the Granian every few moments.

"You know how girls are," Sirius told him, nodding at the other Gryffindors a few paces away. Following his gaze, James and Peter watched the girls ooh again while Remus hung back, wearing a pensive expression. "Give them a couple of pretty flowers, and they'll do anything for you."

Frowning, James narrowed his eyes at Lily; he seriously doubted that she would agree to help them just because they handed her a bouquet, but he kept his thoughts to himself as he turned to Sirius again. "And you're going to be the one to do that, I suppose?"

"'Course not, mate," he answered, wiping his nose on his sleeve and looking back at the flying gray blur. "It wouldn't seem real coming from me. It would have to be one of you."

Exchanging a rapid glance, James and Peter both acknowledged the other's horror. "Well, it can't be me!" Peter protested. "I've never talked to—er—given flowers to a girl before! I'll mess it up somehow, I'm sure of it!"

"But I can't do it!" James exclaimed. "Evans hates me! I'm pretty sure that she'd throw them back in my face or pull out her wand. There's no chance it'll work if I do it!"

"Well, it can't be me, either," Sirius repeated. "She hates me just as much, and I gave Alice a spare Chocolate Frog last week. If I gave Evans flowers, a row might start in Gryffindor Tower so massive that Professor McGonagall would have to get involved."

"How do you figure that?" James questioned, tilting his head.

"I know enough about girls to recognize a recipe for trouble," Sirius replied, shrugging. "I don't understand it either, but that's the way it is. So are you going to do it or not?"

"Me?" James protested again. "But—"

"Look," Sirius interrupted, nodding at Peter, "it's either you or him, and quite frankly, I don't think that he has much of a chance. No offense," he added to Peter, who quickly nodded to display his agreement.

"So it'll be you, then," Sirius decided, turning back towards James. Glowering at the others, James curled his lip and rested his arms on the fence railing while his roommates turned to listen to Professor Kettleburn's excited chatter.

The next day, Sirius urged James to corner Lily during Remus' Study of Ancient Runes class. For some reason, James grew a tight knot in his stomach whenever he thought about his upcoming task, and he tried to convince the others to change their minds several times throughout the day. However, the moment of reckoning soon arrived, and he reluctantly let Sirius and Peter frog-march him down into the common room.

"Just tell her that you hope she has a good Christmas break," Sirius whispered to him as they approached the circle of armchairs near the fireplace.

"And then what?" James asked, nearly in a panic as he spotted Lily and her friends sitting a little distance from the fire.

"Just say whatever comes to mind," Sirius answered. "You'll do great!" Giving him a shove forward, he raised his eyebrow at James expectantly. "The flowers?"

Grimacing, James pulled out his wand and gave it a shake. " _Orchideous_ ," he half-mumbled, and a bundle of droopy orchids sprouted from his wand-tip. Pulling them free, he hid them behind his back and faced the girls nervously before turning back to Sirius.

"This is mental!"

"Hurry up!" Sirius commanded. "What are you waiting for?"

Gritting his teeth, James turned and took a few steps forward, wishing that Lily's friends would head for their room and leave Lily by herself. Unfortunately, the cluster of girls seemed to notice his presence at the same time, and they eyed him wordlessly as he quickened his stride to separate himself from his roommates.

"Hey, Evans!" he greeted, trying his best to force on a smile. "I just came to wish you a good holiday," he said, slowing to a halt just in front of her.

"Just to me?" she inquired dryly, tilting her head in the direction of her wide-eyed roommates. "Or would you like to wish us all a delightful Christmas?"

Losing a bit of his smile, James quickly held out the flowers before he could change his mind. "I got these for you," he announced, trying to read her expression as she gaped at the orchids. Deciding that she was definitely somewhere between shocked and terrified, he suppressed the urge to gulp as Lily slowly accepted the flowers while her friends looked on.

"They're a little . . . wilted," Lily finally pointed out, and Hillary let out a high-pitched giggle. Not sure how to reply, James scuffed his foot on the ground and stood there for a few moments as the other girls held their breaths.

"Well, have a nice Christmas," he finally told Lily before bolting backwards as quickly as he could. Behind him, he could hear the girls whispering to each other, and he glanced over his shoulder to see Lily holding the bouquet at arm's length with a confused expression.

Joining Sirius and Peter, he stood by their sides and ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know—how do you think that went?"

"You did great!" Sirius assured him, a wide grin on his face as he stared at the girls with his arms crossed. "Did you see that look she gave you? She's not sure to forget that over the holidays!" Hoping despite himself that she still might, James stumbled forward a bit as Sirius clapped him on the shoulder and led them back to their room.

Concluding only a few more days of classes, the school was emptied as the students walked down to Hogsmeade through the freshly-fallen snow, ready for the holidays and the train ride back to London. Before boarding on separate cars, James tried to approach Lily again with another bouquet at Sirius' suggestion, but she quickened her pace after spotting him and disappeared before he could reach her. Slightly confused, James jogged back in the other direction to join his roommates, quickly discarding his flowers on the train rails beneath the Hogwarts Express. Snape, in the midst of boarding a nearby car, caught the action and gave him a piercing look before James stuck out his tongue and caused him to look the other way with a sneer.

After several hours of chugging through the snow, the train reached King's Cross Station, and James and Sirius parted ways with their other roommates before running off to join James' parents. Taking the Muggle Underground, they made it to Potter Cottage after another hour of traveling and greeted Winthrop the house-elf inside. Scarfing down dinner, James and Sirius then crawled upstairs to James' room and collapsed into bed only to fall asleep a few minutes later.

The next day, James awoke to the sun burning in his eyes. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed his face, his head throbbing with the after-effects of a lengthy day in a train compartment. He briefly wondered if he had gotten enough sleep, but he soon bolted upright when he realized that Sirius was already awake and was rummaging through James' desk drawers.

"What are you doing?" James inquired, surprised to see Sirius up this early. Reaching for his glasses, he put them on to see his friend more clearly.

"Where did you put it?" Sirius asked from below, his voice muffled by the drawer that he had stuck his head into. As he reemerged, he bumped his head against the desk and clutched himself. "Ow!"

Glancing around, Sirius caught sight of James' suitcase under the bed and grabbed it with a lunge. After opening it and throwing out James' unpacked clothes, he pulled out the thick copy of _Animagi in the Making_ and threw it onto the floor next to several rolls of parchment and a short stack of books.

"I thought we'd get a head start," Sirius told James, opening the nearest book and grabbing a quill.

Craning his neck to see the title in Sirius' possession, James squinted and read, " _Seven Ways to Make Your Transfiguration Process Easier_? Where'd you get that?"

"The library," Sirius answered.

"But I thought that library books weren't allowed out of Hogwarts," James said.

"They aren't," Sirius responded, continuing to scribble hurriedly. "But what Mr. Jaune doesn't know I have, he can't take back, right? There's also _Self-Transfiguration Explained_ , _1001 Common Animagus Forms_ , and several editions of _Transmogrification Weekly_ ," he announced, pointing to each with his quill in turn.

"What would Peter and I do without you?" James asked with a grin as he slipped off his bed and opened the nearest periodical.

"Definitely not become Animagi, that's what," Sirius replied, pointing to a piece of parchment. "Do you think you could hand me a roll? This book doesn't have enough space for me to write."

For the better part of the next week, James and Sirius worked on learning all they could about Self-Transfiguration, only venturing downstairs to eat or grab an extra roll of parchment. Winthrop once tried to enter James' room for a cleaning, but James shooed him off before he could spot any of their reading material, ultimately disquieting the house-elf's sense of trust. Figuring that it was only a matter of time before his parents would grow wary of their seclusion as well, James decided to keep an ear out for the sound of footsteps outside his bedroom door.

By the end of the week, James and Sirius had made significant progress on their research, having even drawn up a preemptive plan for their goal. When the Lupins and Pettigrews arrived at Potter Cottage on Christmas afternoon, James had to keep himself from blurting out their discoveries in front of everyone, waiting instead for a chance to talk to Peter privately. Thankfully, after exchanging their initial greetings, the boys were able to disappear in James' room while their parents stayed in the drawing room for a cup of tea. In the privacy of the second floor, the four roommates exchanged presents, the most curious of James' being a pair of enchanted socks that bit your feet if they ripped and needed repair. Afterwards, however, Sirius handed James a small package that jingled when he shook it.

"It's a pocket Sneakoscope," Sirius told him, chewing absent-mindedly on a Sugar Quill. "It starts whistling if it senses mischief nearby."

Examining the top-like object curiously, James turned it over in his hand while Remus eyed it with an upturned brow. "Does it really work?" Remus asked.

"Sure! My dad keeps one in his office, and I can't walk past the door with a pocket full of Flaring Firecrackers," Sirius answered.

"My mum just got a bigger one to stand behind our front door," Peter piped up. "Now no one can get in without us knowing."

"What do you need that for?" James questioned.

Reddening, Peter played with a strand of the carpet. "Well, Mum's been worried about some of the articles in _The Daily Prophet_. She thinks we'd best prepare if You-Know-Who ever decides to . . ." Breaking off, he gulped. "Ever decides to come after us."

"Why would Voldemort want to come after you?" James laughed, and Peter winced at the name. "The Death Eaters only attack Muggles!"

At the morose expressions on Remus' and Peter's faces, he quickly lost his tilted grin.

"I mean, they've only attacked Muggle families, haven't they?"

"Didn't you hear?" Remus asked. "The Death Eaters just attacked a wizarding family."

"It was in the newspaper yesterday," Peter added quietly when James' heart froze. "It gave my mum a near heart attack."

"But I thought they didn't have anything against wizards," James protested.

"One of the parents was a Muggle-born," Remus explained, "and that's just about as bad as being a Muggle according to the Death Eaters."

As James sat back in silence, mind running, Remus and Peter fidgeted with their hands. After a few moments, James addressed them both. "I had no idea. My parents never told me anything."

"I understand if you and Sirius missed it," Remus said, looking away. "It's not like it affects you or anything."

"What do you mean by that?" Sirius asked, bristling slightly.

"You're both purebloods," Remus explained, though he had looked up at Sirius' sharp reply. "Peter and I, we're—"

"I don't care what percent wizard or Muggle you are!" Sirius reprimanded harshly. "It bloody well affects us, too! The Death Eaters can't just run about cursing our friends without affecting us! And they don't just hate Muggles and Muggle-borns—they'd be more than chuffed to have their way with anyone who sympathizes with them! Do you know what Mulciber called me the other day?" When none of the others replied, he spat, "Blood-traitor! That's what purebloods call it when 'respectable' wizards or witches associate with Muggles and the like. James and I qualify just by being around you!"

"He's right, you know," James interjected at his friends' lowered faces. "You're not the only ones this war is affecting."

Catching himself in the middle of his sentence, James brought his voice down and stared at his hands in shock for a moment. This was the first time he had used the word "war" in relation to the Death Eaters, and the others had seemed to notice the expression as well. None of them said anything, their eyes flitting to each other's faces until Remus finally broke the silence.

"Look, I'm sorry," he told Sirius and James. "I won't assume what you're feeling again."

"Well," Sirius admitted after a pause, "you're right about my family. They're part of the problem. Frankly, I'm surprised they haven't disowned me yet."

Remus smirked slightly, and James turned to him. "What happened to the half-blood family?"

Again, Remus lowered his head, and James briefly regretted asking. "None of them made it." The others all looked down, but Remus cleared his throat and pressed on anyway. "Everyone's been shaken up over it, and there's been reports of looting and panic-driven burglary all over the country. Surely, you've heard about the break-ins? They've been all over the papers for the past week."

"Vandalism like what Grimean Righton was doing when Professor Val tracked him down?" James asked.

Nodding, Remus said, "The pillaging has only gotten worse, and the Ministry suspects that there are more Death Eaters now than there have been in years."

From downstairs, James' mother suddenly interrupted the boys' conversation. "James, I have Christmas cake down here, and Marjorie brought Wizard Crackers!"

"Coming!" James yelled back, his loud exclamation causing both Remus and Peter to jump. "Come on!" he told the others in his normal voice, leaping from the ground. "We don't want to let them eat it all!"

"Hold on, James!" Sirius warned as the others stood. "We have something to tell Peter, remember?"

"Oh, right," James agreed, stopping before he could reach the door. When the other boys gave him an odd look, he explained to Remus, "Peter needs help with his Transfiguration homework."

"I what?" Peter asked before Sirius cut him off.

"You go ahead and tell them that we'll be there in a moment," he told Remus. At that moment, the pocket Sneakoscope in James' palm sprang to life, flashing brightly as it whistled and whirled about. Tossing it Remus' way, James shrugged sheepishly.

"Could you take this with you? I guess it's faulty after all."

Accepting the Sneakoscope without objection, Remus turned and headed down the stairs while the others locked themselves in the room. Reaching under James' bed, Sirius pulled out a roll of parchment and unfurled it for Peter.

"We planned out what spells we need to cast on ourselves and when," Sirius told Peter, speaking again when the mousy-haired boy blinked uncomprehendingly. "You know, to become Animagi. Everything's written down here, so now we don't have to worry about borrowing any more library books."

Gulping, Peter stared at the chart. "That's at least two dozen spells . . ."

"Like I said, we either do it together or not at all," James told him. "But don't worry—with this list, we'll become Animagi in no time!"

"I just wish there wasn't so much to do," Peter complained.

Throwing back his head, Sirius gave a short, bark-like laugh. "Just wait until we start brewing the Animagus Potion! You'll wish that you could go back to simple spellwork when we do!"

"We're going to get started on the potion as soon as we get back to Hogwarts," James added as Peter frowned. "With any luck, we'll be able to convince Evans to help us, but we still need to steal Mandrake leaves from the greenhouses. From now on, preparing to become Animagi is our top priority, all right?"

Nodding, the others voiced their agreement, although Peter only did so with a lingering grimace.

"Great!" James exclaimed, marching towards the door. "Now let's join the others before—"

As soon as his hand had unlatched the door handle, Mrs. Pettigrew's voice came roaring from the lower floor, causing all three boys to jump. "PETER! COME DOWN HERE BEFORE I COME UP THERE AND DRAG YOU DOWN MYSELF! YOU'RE KEEPING US FROM CHRISTMAS CAKE!"

"Sorry!" Remus yelled. "I tried to tell her—"

"DON'T APOLOGIZE, YOUNG MAN!" Mrs. Pettigrew shouted back. "PUNCTUALITY IS NEVER TO BE TAKEN LIGHTLY! THE LAST TIME I ALLOWED PETER TO BE LATE WAS FOR HIS OWN BIRTH, AND I'VE BEEN TRYING TO CORRECT MY MISTAKE EVER SINCE! HABIT IS THE ENABLER FOR ALL VICES!"

"Marjorie!" James' mother admonished with a chuckle, and James, Sirius, and Peter nearly bowled each other over in their hurry to join the laughing families downstairs.


	10. Caught Green-Handed

**Caught Green-Handed**

When James and his roommates returned to Hogwarts after Christmas break, the Gryffindor Quidditch team jumped right back into their strict training regimen at Morgan's orders. Unfortunately, this meant a lot of time away from Gryffindor Tower, so James could not focus his attention on getting Lily to help make the Animagus Potion. However, the intensity of his team's training was enough to distract him from any worries about finishing the potion before the end of the year, and he spent the next several nights moaning on his four-poster after each day's practice.

At the beginning of their second game, Morgan gave the rest of the team a compelling speech to encourage them after the last match. Thankfully, the sky kept bright and sunny all morning, and the Ravenclaw team could not compete with the unyielding energy that their rivals showed. In the end, Gryffindor pulled ahead by a full 90 points, and James, still feeling a bit guilty for having landed in the hospital wing in the middle of their last game, felt relieved by the results.

Ecstatic, the whole of Gryffindor House gathered in the common room after the match to celebrate the victory, and James met his roommates over by the fireplace, where they were chatting with Frank. Making his way over, James waved at Nearly-Headless Nick, who was trying unsuccessfully to fit a party hat over his high-plumed headdress.

"Great game, James!" Frank greeted, clapping him on the back as he came over and causing his glasses to slide down his face. "Did you stop by the refreshment table yet? Michael brought a whole carton of Chocolate Cauldrons!"

"Maybe a bit later," James told him, fixing his glasses. "I'm too excited to eat!"

"After today, we have a good chance of winning the Quidditch Cup!" Sirius exclaimed.

"I can't wait until we face off against Slytherin!" Peter added.

"Your run-in with Pao was really something!" Sirius told James. "I've never seen someone so confused by something as simple as a spin and a feint! Did you see the look on his face? It was like a Thunderbird flew past him!"

Just then, King walked up from behind the group and addressed Frank. "I think you need to help Josiah over there," he told him, nodding towards the prefect where he was yelling at Dill. Waving his wand about, Frank's roommate was attempting to battle a dozen winged paper cups as they poured their sparkling contents onto the boys' heads. "Your friend is trying to enchant the cups so they'll come when called, and things are getting a little out of hand."

"I guess I'll have to rescue him again," Frank told the others after laughing at Dill's predicament, and he quickly hurried off. Nudging King's side, Sirius looked up at his towering features and grinned.

"Nice game, eh?" Sirius asked. "Do you think you can best Slytherin in a couple of months?"

"If James doesn't mess it up again," King replied. Everyone quieted, but they soon relaxed as the older student broke into a flashing grin.

"Hey, go easy on me, will you?" James asked, elbowing him.

"You've got to know how to take it," King told him, and Jorkins suddenly burst out of the swarm of students to grab hold of the sixth-year's arm.

"Rudolph!" she cried, draping herself over him as he immediately assumed his usual stoic expression. Glaring her way, James fought the urge to place a Bat-Bogey Hex on her while she rocked back and forth on her heels. "You did a _wonderful_ job out on the field today! It looks like Slytherin's going to have a hard time beating you, aren't they?"

"As long as James and Frank are there to help out, I suppose they are," King responded, looking over the heads of the nearby students.

"Oh please, we all know you're the best Chaser this team's ever had!" Jorkins fawned with a high-pitched giggle. Feeling the hair on the back of his head bristle, James sent her a scathing look, but she was too busy laughing over King to notice him. "So, what do you say we celebrate together? I know a great spot near the bottom of the tower. It's usually quiet and seclude—"

"I hope you're not trying to steal away one of the team," a voice broke in, and Morgan emerged through the crowd with Adah Kahtri. Staring Jorkins down, Morgan chastised, "Let him rest! Quidditch matches are nothing to joke about!"

"It's all right—I was about to refuse, anyway," King told her, and Jorkins unlatched herself with an indignant look. "You can't leave your Housemates hanging after a match, now can you?" he asked.

"Oh, how thoughtful of you!" Jorkins crooned, reattaching herself to his arm with a loopy beam. "It's wonderful of you to think of everyone else after such a tiring game!"

After giving her roommate another glare, Morgan turned to James. "Practice starts on Monday at six, and I want you there on time."

"Monday? But we just won!" James protested. "Can't it wait for another week?"

"I did some calculations," she answered, "and we'll only have a shot at the Cup if Hufflepuff beats Slytherin by over 50 points, and that's assuming we can still pull ahead of them by over 300. We need to prepare for the worst, and I want to practice as much as possible before the last match—I don't want the school thinking we gave up before we started!"

"No one would ever think that," King assured her, and Morgan placed her hands on her hips with a smile as Jorkins sent her a short glare.

"Let it not be said that Gryffindor lost by lack of effort!" Morgan announced, and Sirius raised his glass.

"Hear, hear!" he cried, making the others laugh.

"Your friend seems to have a better work ethic than you do," Morgan told James with a slight raise of her eyebrow.

Shaking his head, James said, "You haven't heard him complaining about homework."

Turning to Sirius, Morgan said, "There's going to be a spot on the team next year, you know. Do you have any interest in trying for Seeker?"

Shrugging, he replied, "I don't know—Quidditch isn't really my thing."

"Well, if you ever change your mind, you can always—" Breaking off, Morgan narrowed her eyes and leaned over his cup. "What's that you've got there? That isn't Firewhiskey, is it?"

Jerking back, Sirius narrowly avoiding spilling his drink all over his robes. "Of course not! Why would you think that?" When Morgan continued to stare at him, he began inching past the others. "I just realized that I should probably congratulate the rest of the team. Great job, you two! Keep up the good work!" he told Morgan and King before disappearing into the crowd.

"Oh no, I'm not letting him get away that easily," Morgan growled, shoving up the sleeves of her robes and marching after him. As she left, James tried hard to suppress a laugh while Remus moaned and rubbed his forehead.

"Well, I guess she's gone," Jorkins harrumphed before turning to King. "Are you sure you don't want to find somewhere more private, Rudolph?"

"Now that I think about it, I remember I promised to sign a few of the first-years' scarves," King told her, freeing his arm with a gentle yet firm motion. "I'll be around."

Once he had left, Jorkins pursed her lips as Adah sighed and shook her head. "Why don't you just give it up, Bertha?" she asked. "He's never going to take interest in you."

"How about you mind your own business?" Jorkins spat back, and James coughed as the irony of her question hit him. "You don't know what he's thinking, now do you?" Turning around, she scurried after King's tall form with an expectant wave. "Oh, Rudolph! I'll be waiting when you're done!"

After the celebrations ended, James turned his attention to his homework, which had mostly lain forgotten amid the hard work of the last few weeks. Unfortunately, with Quidditch practices still taking up his evening energy, he barely had the time to keep up with his studies, and he took to completing classwork during History of Magic and Muggle Studies. In the latter period, he also conferred with Sirius and Peter about how to get enough Mandrake leaves for the Animagus Potion.

"It'll have to be in Herbology, of course," Sirius told the others. "Professor Slughorn won't have anything as rare as Mandrake leaves lying around the Potions storerooms."

"How do you know that?" Peter whispered back.

"I've already checked," Sirius admitted. "There's nothing."

"Then how about one of you try getting the leaves this time?" James suggested, remembering with a shudder his last encounter with an angry, full-grown Mandrake. "I've already given it a go."

"I don't think a Mandrake will take too kindly to any of us trying to prune it," Sirius pointed out. "But according to Evans, its leaves are used for more than just the Animagus Potion, so Professor Sprout is sure to keep extras in the greenhouses. She probably knows a safer way to remove them from the Mandrakes."

"We'll search for them, then," James agreed, taking instantly to the easier plan. "Every day in Herbology, until we find them."

And search they did. Every week, they eagerly awaited their Herbology lectures, which they would spend peering into the cabinets along the walls. As long as James, Sirius, or Peter kept watch for the others, no one suspected their distracted behavior during the lessons, but their search was slow-going. Peter once suggested sneaking in at night with James' Invisibility Cloak, but Hagrid had once let slip that getting in the greenhouses without Professor Sprout's aid was impossible even for him, and the boys continued to poke around during class.

Their other lessons progressed normally, and Professor Val had added a new set of assignments to the syllabus near the end of January. Having recently completed their homework on concealment and disguise, the class was now learning to identify traces of Dark and Light Magic on inanimate objects, a subject that Professor Val seemed to know a great deal about. At the end of the class, the students began to pack up reluctantly for their next lesson, and James was surprised to see Professor Flannegin enter the room. Looking uncomfortably out of place among the happily chatting students, he stepped quickly to the side to avoid Alice and Lily as they strolled past him, clutching the sheaf of papers in his arms more closely to his chest.

Turning around at his entrance, Professor Val smiled brightly. "Eadward, I was wondering when you'd show up! Do you have the charts ready?"

Looking at her, Flannegin opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out right away. Attempting to squeeze past him, James was driven back when Professor Val reached for the papers and Flannegin nearly dropped them again, fumbling while a few of them slipped out of his grasp.

"I'm so sorry. Here, I'll get that," Professor Val offered, bending down to collect the stray papers. Unable to move around him, James waited as Flannegin reddened and bent to the floor as well.

"This time of year is always busy, isn't it?" Val asked when they stood again, taking the rest of the charts from Flannegin's arms.

"Er—yes," he stammered back. "Quite right."

"I can't thank you enough for these!" Val told him. "We're learning about magic detection, and there's a fair amount of Arithmancy involved."

"Oh, I see," Flannegin answered, and James tried to push past him once again just as the professor backpedaled towards the door suddenly. "Well, I'm glad I could be of service, Ms. Cleary."

"Oh, please," she replied, waving her hand. "I've told you a million times, you can call me Val."

"Right," he spoke again, flushing deeper. "Val . . . Do call if you need anything else. I'll be in my office—I mean, if I'm not teaching, that is . . ."

"I think I'll be fine, Eadward," Val laughed, her white teeth flashing again. "Arithmancy was one of my best subjects as a student."

"Really?" Professor Flannegin asked, perking up.

"The mathematics of Stellology saved my hide on quite a few Astronomy exams," she told him. "Still, my favorite Arithmancy branch was always Logology."

"Fascinating, isn't it?" Flannegin inquired, leaning forward. "It serves as the very backbone of wizarding law and order! Have you read the latest edition of _Conjurers' Journal_? Octavian Kelby, receiver of the Order of Merlin, Second Class, has traced the roots of Logology all the way back to—"

"Excuse me, sir," James finally interrupted. "Can you let us through?"

"Oh! My apologies," Flannegin told him, blinking, and he quickly moved aside to allow James and his roommates out of the door.

"Bungling professor should watch where he's standing," Sirius muttered on the way out, and the others made vague grunts of agreement as they made their way to the castle grounds.

In another several minutes, they joined the Hufflepuff students inside Greenhouse #3, where Professor Sprout picked up a bundle of valerian stalks and showed it to the class. James, Sirius, and Peter waited distractedly for her lecture to end, repeatedly glancing at the rows of jarred plants along the walls, and they were the first to move when Sprout dismissed them.

"Practice good garden etiquette while tending to your valerian shoots! I noticed that a few of you left your trowels on the floor after our last class," Professor Sprout announced, and James had already planted himself at the far end of the greenhouse before she could finish speaking.

Unfortunately, his eagerness was soon evaporated by Remus' approach. "Have you got any fertilizer there?" he asked James, and James quickly shoved a sack of dragon dung his way.

"Peter, why don't you and Remus go to one of the tables?" James suggested, locking eyes with his pudgy roommate. "We'll catch up with you in a bit. Got to find some more compost."

Catching on immediately, Peter nearly dragged Remus away from the others, and Sirius stood watch over James while he poked around the supplies. Chewing his lip in boredom, Sirius waited with his arms crossed until leaning towards James a few minutes later.

"Found anything?" he whispered, and James nearly hit his head on a low-hanging Shrivelfig vine when he looked up.

"I just started searching!" James hissed. "How am I supposed to find one of the rarest plants in a matter of minutes?

"Hurry up, Sprout's coming!" Sirius warned, and James straightened again, this time striking the Shrivelfig vine with his temple. Rubbing the spot, he caught his breath as Professor Sprout walked up to the two of them.

"Having trouble finding something?" she inquired.

"Er . . . actually, yeah," James admitted, throwing Sirius a hard look. "Do you have any Mooncalf dung? I was thinking of using it instead of dragon compost."

"What's wrong with dragon dung?" Sprout asked, pursing her lower lip and looking a bit affronted.

"Nothing! I just wanted to try something new, that's all," James quickly replied. Praying that the story would pass her inspection without suspicion, he held his breath until Sprout nodded, her shoulders drooping.

"I don't often keep Mooncalf dung in the greenhouses, but the last group of fifth-years were just working with Sopophorous plants," she explained as she led James and Sirius along the wall. "Truthfully, I don't find the fertilizer that useful for a wide range of plants, but I make it a point to encourage safe experimentation. You should find some in there," she told the boys, pointing to a closed cabinet near the floor. "Just make sure to put it back when you're done."

Walking off, she left James and Sirius standing awkwardly over the cabinet, and Sirius finally shrugged. "You might as well grab it so that she doesn't get suspicious," he advised, and James hunkered down and opened the miniature door obediently.

After pushing past a few jars of assorted seeds and plant roots, James found the Mooncalf dung and removed it carefully. However, just as he was about to shut the swinging door, he froze with his hand still around the knob.

"Wait, hold onto this for a second!" he ordered Sirius, shoving him the fertilizer while he reached farther into the cabinet. Fumbling with the jars inside, he pushed aside several glass containers until finally grabbing a partially-filled bottle near the back and yanked it forward, reading the label stuck to the front.

 _Mandrake leaves_.

"This is it!" James hissed at Sirius, almost holding the bottle aloft in his excitement. At the last moment, he remembered to keep it hidden from the other students and displayed the jar to Sirius more discreetly.

"Blimey, she led us right to it!" Sirius whispered back, his eyes popping.

"There's not much, but it'll be enough," James told him, beginning to back out of the cabinet. "I'll just slip in in my pocket—"

"Don't you think Sprout will miss it?" Sirius cut him off, stopping him before he could stand up. "Mandrake leaves are rare even in the greenhouses, and she might get suspicious if a whole bottle of them vanishes."

Seeing his point, James chewed his lip for a moment and then turned to Sirius. "Have you got anything in your pockets?"

Although his eyebrows lifted, Sirius reached into his robes and felt around. "Just a few Stink Pellets—I forgot to take them out after pranking Mr. Jaune two days ago."

"Give me three," James ordered, and he opened the bottle in his hand to take out three Mandrake leaves. When Sirius placed the pellets in his palm, James tapped his wand over each of them, carefully Transfiguring the prank supplies into stand-in Mandrake leaves. Once he had finished, he stuffed them into the bottle in their predecessors' stead.

"Even I can't tell the difference!" Sirius praised as James shoved the bottle back into the cabinet. "Nice job, mate!"

"Give one to Peter when no one's looking," James instructed him, handing him two of the Mandrake leaves behind his back and pocketing the last. "We have a potion to make."

A few minutes later, Sirius was able to slide Peter one of the Mandrake leaves without Remus spotting him. When Peter opened his mouth to gasp, James jabbed him in the stomach and caused him to undergo a coughing fit, earning a few sideways looks from the other students. The class could not end soon enough for James, and he slipped past Professor Sprout smilingly on the way out, itching to speak with Sirius and Peter in private. Unfortunately, they still had one last period to attend, and Sirius had already turned to Remus with a grin, a betrayal of his high spirits.

"What new terror do you suppose Professor Kettleburn has for us this time?" Sirius asked as they left the greenhouses behind. Looking at the ground, Remus harrumphed a little, and James reached out to pat his shoulder.

"Hey, at least he hasn't shown us a Red Cap yet!" James pointed out. "I don't fancy losing a leg in one of his classes."

"I'm still worried that he'll make us study Imps," Peter said, shuddering. "They're just as bad as Red Caps, maybe even worse!"

"I don't know," Remus said, shrugging with a frown at the floor. "I think I'd prefer a Red Cap to another non-sentient Beast."

"Nah, you wouldn't when you saw one," Sirius told him. "My Uncle Alphard had a few invade his yard once, and the stories that he tells are grisly. Regulus had to sleep with my parents for a few nights afterwards."

"Did you, too?" James inquired with a smirk.

"Of course not," Sirius scoffed, glaring at him. "Who'd want to sleep in the same room as my mum, the way she snores?"

Laughing, the four joined the Slytherins where they had gathered around Professor Kettleburn, who waved his only hand to capture their attention. Hagrid stood nearby, holding a bucket of lightning-resistant potion at the ready, and Fang the boarhound let out a low whine at his side, looking much less excited than his owner.

"All right, look up here!" Professor Kettleburn called out to the students, and he tapped an elevated cage that contained a handful of miniature, crab-like animals with impressive fangs. "We're going to spend the period on Chizpurfles again. Hopefully this time we can get them to eat."

At his words, the whole class groaned. The last lesson had been incredibly dull; none of the tiny creatures had budged from the back of their cage during the last class, as Remus had been standing a little too close to their enclosure.

"Who wants to try and coax them out first?" Professor Kettleburn inquired with a beam, and James thought that Hagrid might thrust his meaty hand into the air before the rest of them could move. For better or for worse, Kettleburn prodded the students into a queue, and they began tempting the Chizpurfles with small vials of various potions.

"Keep your wands away unless you want them chewed in half!" Kettleburn kept reminding them throughout the lesson, padding back and forth between the crouched students. "The magical cores attract them!"

"Do you think that Chizpurfles prefer unicorn tail cores?" Peter questioned his roommates after swatting away one of the crab-like creatures. "At least a dozen have tried to crawl into my pocket."

James and the others were unable to answer right away, because the sound of approaching footsteps drew everyone's attention away from the Chizpurfles. Turning around, the entire class watched as Professor Sprout marched across the grounds to their small circle, her clenched fists swinging. Just behind her, Professor McGonagall followed with slightly widened eyes as she struggled to keep up with her shorter companion.

"You two!" Professor Sprout exclaimed as she came to a sudden stop, pointing accusingly at James and Sirius. "I want you to turn out your pockets this instant!"

"Why, what have they done?" Alice asked as the other students conversed agitatedly. His mind beginning to race, James shared a rapid glance with Sirius.

"I have reason to believe that you stole Mandrake leaves from my greenhouses, and I want an explanation!" Professor Sprout accused the boys, and the rest of the class erupted into a flurry of excited shouting and questioning.

"But why?" Hagrid spoke up, tilting his head while Fang copied him. Breathless, Remus turned to gape at his roommates.

"They wouldn't do that!" he objected, staring at his friends as if waiting for them to agree.

"I have proof!" Sprout declared, still heated, and the listening students gasped again. "After my last lesson, I found a sack of Mooncalf dung that Black and Potter left out. When I examined it, I realized that it had been left untouched, and when I checked its cabinet, I noticed that the jars had been moved around. A quick Revelio Charm was enough to show me that three Mandrake leaves had been replaced with Stink Pellets! Mandrake leaves can sell at fifteen Galleons apiece in London, and quite a bit more in smaller towns!"

"I'm sure that there's been some kind of mistake," Remus defended, still dubious. "Maybe they just got misplaced."

"Nevertheless, I demand to see the inside of their pockets!" Sprout demanded.

"This is outrageous!" Sirius protested, raising his hands. "Why accuse us when it could have easily been anybody?"

"Better just to open your pockets, Mr. Black," Professor McGonagall spoke up, regarding the whole situation with narrowed eyes. "If you don't have them, you can get right back to your class."

Holding their breaths, the rest of the students watched James and Sirius closely, Remus and Peter most of all. Finally, after seeing no way out of their predicament, James and Sirius reached into their pockets and each pulled out a single Mandrake leaf. Immediately, the rest of the students started buzzing again, and several of them let out shouts as Professor Sprout collected the leaves from them.

"There's one more I need," Sprout announced when she had finished, turning a cold eye on Remus and Peter. "They were with you two all class long. Show me your pockets before I put both of you in detention."

Remus' mouth fell open, but Peter put his stammering to a halt when he pulled out his leaf, staring at the ground. Snatching the leaf away, Sprout tucked it into her robes and donned a satisfied smile while Professor McGonagall peered down at the three incriminated students, her arms crossed immovably.

"If that's all, Pomona, you can leave us to it," McGonagall told Professor Sprout without moving her cold gaze. As Sprout turned back towards the greenhouses, Wilkes and his friends oohed mockingly next to Hagrid, and Snape looked more pleased than James had ever seen him before. Facing Professor Kettleburn, McGonagall said, "I apologize for the inconvenience, Silvanus, but I'll have to take these three students away. Whatever material they miss, they'll have to make up outside of class."

"Er—perfectly understandable, Minerva," Kettleburn replied, rubbing the back of his head. Waving his arm, he tried to coax his students back into order, but even Hagrid had lost his interest in the class while Professor McGonagall began to lead James, Sirius, and Peter away from the cage of Chizpurfles.

"Have fun in detention!" Wilkes called after the Gryffindors as they walked off, Mulciber and Avery cackling.

"I hope Professor McGonagall remembers to let you live, Potter!" Snape sneered as they passed by, and James could only glare in his direction as he walked away. However, he quickly looked away as he caught sight of Remus' open mouth, and he kept his eyes trained on McGonagall as she led them off through the grounds.

When they had nearly reached the castle's shadow, Professor McGonagall halted abruptly and rounded on the boys behind her. "What were you thinking?" she demanded, her green eyes ablaze. Almost spitting, she hissed, "What compels you to steal from the Herbology greenhouses?"

"It was just a stupid prank," Sirius mumbled, glancing to the side and kicking at the grass.

"A prank?" McGonagall repeated, incredulous.

"Yeah," James supported, knowing that there was no way to escape punishment at this point. "We wanted to see if we could get away with it, that's all."

"If it was just a prank, then why did each of you need to have a leaf of your own?" Professor McGonagall inquired, her eyebrow rising. None of the boys responded to this, and James avoided his roommates' eyes as McGonagall became even more rigid. "I am beyond words! Your actions were inconceivably idiotic, whatever your reasoning! Do you understand the implications of your rule-breaking? Not only have you disrespected Pomona and her teaching facilities, but you have also caused Gryffindor House a cauldron-ful of embarrassment! And to top it all off, you're still hiding something from me . . ."

Shrinking under her gaze, James glanced quickly at Sirius and Peter and silently pleaded with them to stay quiet. Although obviously fighting the urge to speak, Peter continued to stare at the ground as Sirius stared back up at Professor McGonagall with his jaw set.

"If you choose not to speak," McGonagall finally continued, "I have no choice but to put you in detention. And since stealing happens to be a repeat offense for you," she added, glaring at James and Sirius, "I would be justified in recommending your expulsion. Do you have anything to say for yourselves?" After another moment's silence, she straightened and folded her hands together. "I see. In that case, I expect you'll understand if Argus makes a thorough inspection of your room to make sure that you don't have any more stolen items lying about. Any rights to privacy have just been revoked."

Keeping his eyes on the grass, James hoped that Sirius' Disillusionment Charm would be powerful enough to keep Filch fooled to the whereabouts of _Animagi in the Making_ , which would surely give away their illegal activities.

Turning around again, McGonagall added over her shoulder, "Two hundred points will be taken from your House—"

"Two hundred?" James interrupted, gaping.

" _Don't push me, Potter!_ " Professor McGonagall spat, spinning around to face him. "And if I _ever_ catch you in the act of thievery again, it'll be expulsion. For _all_ of you," she added, glaring down at Peter as he avoided her gaze. "Now, if you'll follow me, we can set up your detention times in my office, which you will observe every day for a month. And yes, that includes weekends."

Afraid to protest again, James looked at Sirius and Peter mournfully and followed Professor McGonagall back up to the castle, where they ended up serving their first detention that very evening. Forced to polish each suit of armor in the East Wing, they also refurbished several of the busts and portraits spanning the length of the hall. The task took them nearly six hours to complete, all under the heavy scrutinization of McGonagall, and they had long since missed supper by the time they finally finished. Stomachs rumbling, they trudged up to Gryffindor Tower with dampened spirits, opening the door of their room to find Remus picking up a stray textbook from the floor. By the looks of the surroundings, Filch had already searched through their dormitory.

"Hello," James, Sirius, and Peter all muttered as they entered, and Remus threw the book onto his four-poster, causing Mussmug to hiss loudly from the corner where she was hiding.

"Why did you do it?" Remus asked, turning around and glaring at them. "I saw the hourglasses in the Entrance Hall—Gryffindor's is nearly empty. What good did it do you? I know you weren't selling them like Professor Sprout said. Were you just stealing them for the thrill of it?"

Ducking his head, Peter turned to James and Sirius. Shaking his head, James advised the others to keep quiet; he knew that this would be the worst possible time to admit their secret to Remus, seeing how he was partially responsible for their decision to become Animagi in the first place. However, his signal was not needed, because Remus had turned away without waiting for an answer and grabbed the pile of textbooks from his mattress.

"Never mind. I don't want to know," he said, not meeting their eyes on the way to the door. "I'm going to the library."

After the door shut with a thud, the others looked at each other knowingly, and Sirius rushed to his four-poster a moment later. Reaching underneath, he groped around until he pulled out an invisible weight and shook it, creating a series of thumping noises.

"It's still here," he sighed in relief, placing the invisible chest carefully back in its hiding place.

"Why can't we just tell Remus?" Peter demanded suddenly, rounding on the others. "If he knew what we were trying to do, maybe he wouldn't be angry with us!"

"That's the last thing we can do!" James responded harshly. "If he finds out now, he'll almost definitely rat us out to the professors!"

"But wouldn't he understand if we told him the truth?" Peter asked. "If we could talk him through it, maybe we could convince him that we're doing the right thing after all!"

"If you tell him, I'll slip another fifty Mandrake leaves in your pocket and tell Professor Sprout," Sirius threatened, and Peter's eyes widened.

"Remus can't know for his own good, do you hear?" James added with a warning growl. "Don't you dare go behind our backs and ruin this for us." When Peter looked down with a torn expression, James softened his tone. "I know you don't want Remus to be mad, and none of us wanted detention, either. But we can't give up on becoming Animagi now that we've started, so we have to keep it to ourselves."

Glancing up, Peter gave him a resentful look, and James shook his head. "Look, if it makes any difference to you, we'll be more careful from now on. No more stealing from the greenhouses. We'll have to get the ingredients some other way. If that means waiting for Dogweed and Deathcap to open for another year, so be it. We'll play it safe so this won't happen again, okay?"

Staring at him, Peter stayed silent for a few moments before finally nodding, glancing at the floor. Satisfied, James turned to Sirius as well. "We're all in this together, aren't we?"

"You don't have to ask me, mate," Sirius told him with a small smile. "At least we don't have to rope Evans into this for a while, eh?"

"Or, you know, at all," James quickly interjected, rubbing the back of his head. "She won't be eager to help us after seeing what happened today."

To his relief, Sirius nodded and yawned, stretching his arms. "Well, I'm exhausted. I'll see you both in the morning."

"Goodnight," James and Peter answered, and James slid into his four-poster a few minutes later and tried not to think about Remus' reaction. Despite having appeased Peter, he stayed awake for far longer than his worn-out body desired, tossing and turning as he waited for a sleep that would not come.


	11. Professor Val's Sorrow

**Professor Val's Sorrow**

The next morning, Morgan was the first to find James in the Great Hall, the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team behind her. When she opened her mouth, several nearby students jumped at the ferocity of her voice.

"DETENTION FOR A MONTH?" Using James as a shield, Sirius and Peter shrank down in their seats behind him. "HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO WIN THE QUIDDITCH CUP IF YOU'RE SCRUBBING DISHES?"

Furious, she spun around without another word, James' pleas doing nothing to keep her from storming out of the Great Hall. Sitting down again, he watched her walk away amid scattered laughter from the other tables, and he met hostile glares coming from the rest of the team. Turning on their heels, they followed Morgan and left Frank standing alone, and he wavered for a moment before approaching James.

"Hey," he greeted with a mellow voice, offering a small smile. "I'm sorry about the others. I told them that you couldn't help when your detention was, but they need a little time. Besides, you know how Morgan is."

"Thanks anyway, Frank," James told him, and Frank shrugged.

"Hey, what's the worst that could happen? All that Morgan can do is schedule our practices for before sunrise. And don't worry about the House points," he added to Sirius and Peter. "We'll get them back eventually, and honestly, the House Cup doesn't really matter in the long run, does it?"

After clapping James on the back, he turned and headed for the double doors. Feeling slightly better, James was mostly able to ignore Wilkes, who was still laughing over Morgan's outburst with Mulciber and Avery. At the High Table, the watching professors still looked caught off guard, but Professor McGonagall had turned away from the Gryffindor table as if deaf to her niece's yells.

"I wonder if Frank could talk to Remus for us," Sirius muttered, leaning against the table. Remus had refused to acknowledge his roommates all morning, and he had left for Study of Ancient Runes before they could head to breakfast.

"I'm sure that he'll come around in time," James assured him. "He always does."

"Yeah, but this time he thinks that we actually stole something," Sirius replied, poking at his plate with his fork. "It's technically true, but it's all for his own good! Honestly, the irony of the whole situation is exhausting."

"I just wish that we didn't have detention for a month," Peter complained.

Pushing up from the table, James said, "There's nothing we can do about that now. We'll have to try and make up with Remus before our next class. Come on, let's go!"

A short time later, James, Sirius, and Peter gathered with the rest of the third-year Gryffindors for Defense Against the Dark Arts, seating themselves next to Remus. When they waved his way, Remus looked the other way and pretended not to see them.

"Come on now, Remus!" James prodded. "You can't ignore us forever! Talk to us!"

"I have nothing to say," Remus replied, sending a sharp glance at the others. "Until you learn to grow up and stop acting like the rules don't apply to you like the rest of us, you can just sit by yourselves."

"But we're sorry about what we did," James argued, turning to Sirius and Peter. "Aren't we?"

"Sure are," Sirius piped up, and Peter nodded. "After earning a month of detention with Professor McGonagall, we've learned our lesson," Sirius attested.

Staring at them, Remus twisted his face into a frown. Leaning towards him, James pulled out the miniature Sneakoscope from his pocket and handed it to him. "See?" James asked, pointing at the immobile top. "If we're lying, you can stay angry at us."

Examining the limp Sneakoscope in his palm for a few long moments, Remus finally looked back at him when it did not move. "Even if this thing works, you still have to explain why you decided to break Professor Sprout's trust and get the rest of us in trouble," he told James, nodding at the other Gryffindors in the room. Meeting eyes with James as he turned to look, Lily and Alice quickly glanced away and pretended that they were not listening. Lowering his voice, Remus explained, "They're all pretty mad at you for losing nearly all of our House points."

Glancing away, James looked back at Sirius and Peter before facing Remus again. "I can't give you a good reason, but I can say that we're sorry. We won't do anything like this again, I promise."

"Yeah, mate," Sirius agreed. "It was really mental of us."

"We're sorry for making you mad," Peter added. When Remus raised his eyebrow, he quickly spluttered, "And we're sorry for stealing, too! We won't do it again!"

Eyeing the others for several long moments, Remus eventually shook his head and sighed, glancing back down at the Sneakoscope. "Well, I guess I can accept your apology . . . but only after you go through a month of detention with Professor McGonagall."

Clutching his chest as if he had been struck, James grimaced. "Blimey, Lupin, you're heartless!"

Smirking, Remus glanced up and tossed the Sneakoscope at him. "Don't expect me to feel sorry for you when you after McGonagall's dragged you through every rusty cauldron in the castle."

"You won't hear a word of complaint out of us!" Sirius promised him, placing his hand over his heart. "We'll serve our dues like true wizards of Gryffindor!"

"Hopefully that means fewer smart remarks and more elbow grease."

"Thanks for taking us back, mate," James told Remus after the others laughed, but Alice's raised voice broke in before he could reply.

"Does anyone know where Professor Val is?" she asked the class, and everyone turned to look at each other. Eyes wandering to the front of the room, James noticed for the first time the elongated absence of their professor. Frowning, he wondered what was keeping her; after the first day, she usually arrived a few minutes before class, but her desk was glaringly empty.

"I don't know—maybe she lost track of the time again?" Sirius suggested, and the students exchanged another round of fidgety glances. Once a few more minutes had dragged by, they again began to peek towards the door, and James caught his roommates casting a couple looks at the motionless Sneakoscope in his hand. Giving it a shake, James frowned as the object did not stir, and he wondered if Remus was right about it being a hoax.

After what seemed like an eternity, the door finally opened to allow in Professor McGonagall, who strode to the center of the room and faced the staring class. "Defense Against the Dark Arts has been canceled due to unforeseen circumstances," she announced. "You are all excused early, but Valerie has instructed me to pass out next week's homework assignment. She apologizes for the inconvenience."

Summoning a stack of paper with her wand, McGonagall distributed the homework to each of the desks before heading to the door without another word of explanation, leaving the class to wonder aloud. Rising to their feet, the students slowly exited the classroom while clutching their assignments and whispering in small clusters.

"What do you think happened?" Alice asked Lily, her brown eyes swimming with worry. "Do you think that something happened to her?"

"I'm sure that she's perfectly fine," Lily consoled. "She obviously wanted to come, but something must have kept her from being here. It's probably just something the Hogwarts staff had to take care of."

"What if the Auror department called her back for an emergency?" Alice guessed, gasping. "What if she's fighting Death Eaters right now?"

Excited, some of the others began to murmur frantically, and Peter turned to James as he pocketed his Sneakoscope. "Blimey, I think that must be it!" Peter exclaimed. "Why else would she miss class?"

"It makes sense to me!" Sirius agreed. "Professor McGonagall wouldn't tell us a word, so it must be top-secret!"

"Do you think that Professor Val will tell us once she gets back?" Alice inquired.

"Let's ask her when she comes back!" Hillary suggested, and everyone chimed in with their enthusiasm before separating.

After attending a few more lectures in the afternoon, James, Sirius, and Peter met Professor McGonagall just outside of the Great Hall, where she had called them for their evening detention. However, when they approached her stiff figure, they spotted Bertha Jorkins standing by her side, looking unnaturally short next to the Transfiguration professor.

"Why are you here?" James demanded at once, wrinkling his nose.

"There's no need to be so rude about it," Jorkins sniffed, folding her arms. "I didn't want to get partnered with you three, either."

"That's enough," Professor McGonagall interjected before any of the others could retort. "You'll have to work together today, and I don't want to hear any arguing."

"But what did she do _now_?" Sirius asked, pointing at Jorkins.

"Since you're all in the same boat, I don't see why it should make much of a difference," McGonagall answered harshly. "You'll only be working together tonight, so stay civil. Follow me, everyone," she commanded, turning around and striding swiftly down the hallway. Turning to follow her, Jorkins made a face at the boys, and they trailed after her.

After making a few turns, Professor McGonagall stepped down a long flight of stone steps and emerged into a broad, well-lit corridor. At first glance, James was reminded of the Hogwarts dungeons, but this area of the castle was much cheerier with the towering paintings of breadbaskets hanging on the walls. Watching McGonagall with interest, he halted when she stopped in front of an especially large still-life of a fruit bowl. Reaching out, she scratched the pear on the far side, and it started laughing shrilly until it morphed into a three-dimensional door handle.

Grasping it, Professor McGonagall opened the painting to reveal a large, comforting sort of room with a blazing fireplace at the far end of the chamber. Immediately, a myriad of welcoming aromas wafted towards James' nose, and he peered around Jorkins to spot hundreds of house-elves carrying bundles of empty pots and unwashed trays. Four long tables spanned the length of the chamber, and one more sat perpendicular to the rest as if overseeing them; with a start, James suddenly realized that they had entered the kitchens, which were arranged in a perfect replica of the Great Hall above. Towards the end of the hall, he spotted a few house-elves cleaning off plates full of bread rolls and mutton from the farthest tables, and he leaned over to Sirius and Peter.

"So that's how the food gets to the Great Hall," he whispered, and Professor McGonagall turned around.

"The house-elves have already been notified of your arrival. It will be your job to clean the kitchens for their use, which includes whitewashing the stoves, mopping the floors, dusting the cabinets, washing the dishes, and placing everything in order—all without magic."

"We have to clean the _whole_ room?" Sirius demanded, gaping at the immense chamber. "But that'll take ages! What are they for if they're not going to clean up for us?" he asked with his finger turned towards the house-elves, who had all stopped to stare at the newcomers with their opalescent eyes.

" _They_ ," McGonagall answered with a dangerous glint in her spectacles, "provide all of your meals at Hogwarts, not to mention clean up after you during the night. Their services are required in the Middle Courtyard, and you four have earned the honor of tidying up for them while they're away." Turning around, she called out to one of the house-elves, who was running water over a pan in the sink. "Leave it there! The students will take care of it!"

Ears drooping, the house-elf turned off the stream and waddled back to the other side of the kitchen, barely hiding what looked like—James squinted—a tear in his eye? Watching the other house-elves congregate behind McGonagall, James turned back to her as she addressed the students again.

"I am required to accompany the house-elves, but I will be back within the hour. In the meantime, I suggest that you divide your duties and get started. If you have any questions, you can ask one of the house-elves who are staying behind to keep you on task."

When she had finished explaining, the house-elves standing nearby began disappearing in droves, vanishing on the spot with loud cracks to signal their departure. Disapparating right and left, they left the kitchen as James, Sirius, Peter, and Jorkins covered their ears to protect them from the disruptive popping noises. One of the house-elves took Professor McGonagall's hand, and he brought her with him as they both vanished, mingling with the hundreds of other disappearing elves to create an impressive thunderclap.

Finally, the reverberations ended, and James uncovered his ears and stared at the few odd house-elves left in the kitchens, who watched the students shyly before going about their businesses. Most of them walked towards the lengthwise tables and began to clear the leftover plates from the dinner feast, probably against McGonagall's previous orders, and James and his roommates quickly sized up Jorkins as she did the same.

"I'll wash the dishes," Jorkins quickly announced, rushing towards the sinks before they could grow any fuller.

"I'll take the tables," James claimed, running off as well.

"The stoves," Sirius added, leaving Peter standing by himself near the entrance.

"And I'll take the . . . floor?" he said, eyeing the gargantuan tiled surface of the room before sighing deeply.

Working as quickly as they could, James and his roommates ignored Jorkins from her place by the wall, which seemed to please all parties. In fact, James found his task rather assuaging, since he increased Jorkins' workload every time he carried empty plates to the sinks to be washed. The house-elves thanked him several times as he worked, all the while staring at him sympathetically, and he suspected that Professor McGonagall had given them direct orders not to tell him to sit down or take a break. James was still grateful for their company, mostly due to their amazing feats of balance and strength when hoisting several stacks of dishes at once. When James had finally finished clearing the tables after three-quarters of an hour, he joined Sirius by the stoves and watched him as he stopped scrubbing the burners and wiped his forehead.

"The guest must please take a tart!" a house-elf pleaded with Sirius, suddenly appearing from the far wall with a tray of pastries. "Hokart and her friends are grateful for the scrubbed stovetops, sir!"

Brightening, Sirius eagerly snatched a tart and crammed it into his mouth. "Thanks!" he mumbled through a mouthful of crumbs. Beaming, Hokart waited while Sirius grabbed a few more pastries and then turned to James.

"The spectacled one as well, sir! Hokart insists!"

"Thanks!" James told the house-elf, loading his arms with several treats. Grinning at Sirius, he commented, "Maybe this isn't such a bad deal, after all! We should request working in the kitchens for future detentions!"

Before Hokart could walk away, Jorkins appeared at her side with the eagerness of a dog catching scent of a slab of meat. "Tarts, do you say?" she inquired, and Hokart lifted the tray above her head so that Jorkins could pick several off at once.

"Mmm, you really know how to bake," Jorkins praised as she chewed, and Hokart grinned at her just as Peter slipped over the newly-mopped floor from the other end of the kitchens. Clutching the end of his mop, he wobbled as he came to a halt and tried to catch his breath.

"Do you think I'm almost done?" he asked James and Sirius, grabbing a pastry with every other word. "I think I got everything on the far side, and I made sure to mop the corners, too."

"What about under the tables?" Jorkins interrogated, taking a large bite out of a crumbly crumpet. Looking back over his shoulder, Peter deflated only to sigh again when he turned back around and realize that Jorkins had taken the last tart from the tray.

"The guests must not despair: Hokart will get more!" the tiny house-elf squeaked as she turned to her other companions, who had gathered around while the others had been speaking. "Quick! Ohkey! Zeeky! The guests need more tarts!"

Jumping into action, two of the house-elves scurried off towards the many cupboards lining the kitchens, one of them taking Hokart's tray before leaving. Ears jumping upwards, another house-elf stepped forward from the line of silent observers.

"Would the guests like some tea?" he inquired, his long nose and ears quivering with barely-contained enthusiasm.

"Yeah, that'd be great!" James agreed, and the rest of the house-elves began to jump up and down.

"Right away!" the first elf squeaked before dashing off with the others. When they left, Hokart placed her tiny hands on her hips and smiled at the students.

"What can Hokart do to make the guests' day shine like the bright afternoon sun?" she asked.

"I think that's fine, Hokart," James told her, making her shoulders slump a little. "But we're really grateful for everything you've done," he quickly added, causing her to beam again.

"It is Hokart's pleasure, sir!" she responded before turning around to clap twice at the bustling house-elves. "Get to it! Time is a-wasting!"

In a few minutes, the elves had returned with extra pastries and cups of tea, which James and the others inhaled as quickly as they could. When they once again thanked their hosts, Zeeky turned around with a smile.

"Although Zeeky is sad that the guests must be the ones to do it, it is wonderful to have the kitchen cleaned again, sir! It has not been cleaned since Monday!"

Bouncing off, the elves began to pull out bags of flour that dwarfed their bodies, pouring their contents into giant mixing bowls and adding other ingredients. While they worked, James sat in silence with the others, sipping his tea and occasionally taking a big bite out of his raspberry tart.

"You still haven't told us what you're here for," Sirius finally told Jorkins, eyeing her over the top of his teacup.

"Did I offer to tell?" she replied, stuffing another tart into her mouth and smacking her lips together.

"I think it's only fair," James said. "We don't want to work together any more than you do, but everyone in Gryffindor House knows why we have detention. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if you already made up some wild spin on the story to spread through the castle."

"All I know is that you stole some Mandrake leaves from the greenhouses," she defended, sniffing. "What does it matter if I know you needed them for an illegal Love Elixir? But anyway, what happened today wasn't my fault. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"I doubt that you ever 'just happen' to be somewhere when a story's brewing," Sirius criticized, and she glared at him.

"For your information, I got lost while trying to find the detention chamber on the seventh floor," she responded heatedly.

"You got lost on your way to another detention?" James asked, the others voicing similar exclamations of shock. "What is this, your seventh year?"

"The castle's very confusing, in case you haven't noticed!" Jorkins spat back. "Apparently, I entered through a wrong door, and I got stuck in some corridor or another until I finally managed to burst my way out. How could I help it if Professor Val's office was right outside? She and her Auror friend should have kept their voices down, and it didn't help that Val was sobbing the whole time."

Shocked, the others all shared an alarmed glance. "Why was she crying?" Peter questioned.

"Oh, one of her friends was attacked the night before," she explained, sobering for just a moment. "He didn't make it."

For a moment, none of them spoke, all staring at the floor. After a moment, James noticed that his tea had gone cold in his hand.

"It was the Death Eaters, wasn't it?" he finally asked in a low voice. "She said that the Aurors were supposed to be in hiding."

"Well, they only found the body after the incident," Jorkins answered, rubbing her round chin. "It could have been anyone who killed him, I suppose. Professor Val seemed pretty upset about the whole thing. What was her friend's name? Gray?"

"Grace?" James inquired. "Obadiah Grace?"

"Yeah, that's it," Jorkins replied, nodding. "At any rate, it seemed that Val knew him pretty well. But that's when the other Auror tried to leave and saw me standing there, and he dragged me all the way down to McGonagall's office in a fury, yelling about vigilance or something like that. He was a horrid, ugly sort of man, and he nearly ruined my eardrums screaming about the evils of poking my nose where it didn't belong, which was complete rubbish! It wasn't my fault that I ended up right in front of her office! Anyone could have overheard!"

"And I suppose that you weren't standing with your ear pressed against the door?" Sirius asked, and her plump face darkened to the shade of a ripe plum.

"That's besides the point!" she insisted. "He made me late for my detention, and now I'm stuck here dealing with you three offensive brats!" Pausing, she took another long gulp of her tea and placed it down again. "It's outrageous!"

"Who's was spying on private conversations?" James demanded, and she bristled, opening her mouth to respond just as the high-pitched laughing of the painted pear sounded from outside the kitchens. Scurrying around, the house-elves began opening and shutting cupboards in a frenzy as Hokart ran up to James and the others.

"Mistress McGonagall is outside! Quick! Let Hokart hide the tea and crumpets!"

Jumping into motion, the four students quickly gave Hokart their empty teacups as they rapidly scarfed down the last of their pastries, and they ran to the kitchen counters to continue cleaning. Fortunately, they made it back to their stations just as Professor McGonagall entered the room, and she did not say anything about their short break upon her arrival.

The detention dragged on far into the night, and James had long since begun to long for the warmth of his four-poster when they finally finished cleaning several hours later. Abandoning his dishrag, he dragged himself to the kitchens' door, emerging on the other side of the fruit-filled painting with the others, who all looked just as tired as he. Securing the opening to the kitchens, Professor McGonagall turned around and faced them.

"You are excused for the night. Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, and Mr. Pettigrew, I expect to see you outside of the library tomorrow evening. You will be dusting the shelves and reorganizing the books."

Sagging under the thought of the library's towering bookshelves, the three of them turned and trudged back up towards the main floor of the castle, joining Jorkins on the way back to the Gryffindor common room. Once inside, they parted ways and headed for their separate rooms; opening the door to their dormitory, James motioned for the others to stay quiet for Remus, who was already in bed. Tiptoeing carefully, the three crawled towards their four-posters as silently as they could, but the gentle creaking of the floor caused Remus to stir.

"You're back," he murmured, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

"Yeah," James whispered back. "Go back to sleep. We won't bother you."

"I heard that Bertha Jorkins got sent to detention with you," Remus answered, yawning widely.

"We'll tell you about it in the morning," James assured him, and Remus rolled over without another word, pulling his comforter over his ears. Exhausted, James slipped into his own four-poster after taking off his shoes and stared at the ceiling for a few minutes, a heavy weight of thoughtfulness settling over him as he thought of Jorkins' story. However, his weariness soon rendered him unconscious, and he spent a dreamless night recovering from the evening's ordeal.


	12. A Spectacle in the Inn

**A Spectacle in the Inn**

Classes continued without interruption as the sun came out and the snow melted from the mountaintops. Professor Val returned for the following Defense Against the Dark Arts class with merely a brief apology for her absence; James and his roommates, including Remus, who had by then heard about Obadiah's death, studied her carefully, but nothing other than a slight darkening under her eyes hinted at her grief. However, an article about Grace's death appeared later that week in an evening edition of _The Daily Prophet_ , and Alice as well as a few other students seemed to recognize the name, and they treated Val with a certain amount of reverence afterwards.

James thought that the incident would have caused a greater fuss, and he marveled at the overwhelming normalcy of Hogwarts. No one brought up the event after the first week, and classes continued as if nothing had ever happened. Even James' daily detentions passed with a sort of monotonous reoccurrence, and the quietness of everyday life struck an incurable sort of itch within him. Thinking back on the past year, he remembered the various Muggle attacks that had appeared in the news, and he wondered how he had never stopped to think much about the incidents before now. Although James had never met Grace before, he felt a sort of connection to him through Professor Val's stories, and his heart dropped every time he thought about him. After Grace's death, every report of Death Eater activity in _The Daily Prophet_ seemed much more personal to James, and he could not help but wonder if the victims had friends or family who were mourning them at that very moment.

Still, after a few weeks, James eventually began to forget about the strike against the Auror Department, as usually happens after a great shock. Quidditch in particular proved a welcoming source of distraction, not only because the Gryffindor team began to meet before sunrise as Frank had predicted. The physicality of the training helped take James' mind off of other matters, and he determined to work extra hard in order to earn back Morgan's trust. Soon, the team began treating him with civility and even their usual friendliness, urged on mostly by the conciliatory actions of Frank during their practices. Moreover, James' spell-work with Sirius and Peter provided much-needed respite as they continued to practice for their Animagi transformations with the absence of a potion.

In the midst of his daily life, James began to look forward to the approach of his birthday and the second trip to Hogsmeade in late March, which coincided almost exactly within a few days of each other. In order to deliver their well-wishes in person, his parents promised via owl to visit Hogsmeade during the school trip, and James agreed to meet with them at the main square with his roommates, who all accepted the promise of free butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks. Following their pledges, James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter woke up early on Saturday morning to arrive at the village as soon as possible, and they spent the short walk to town talking about the upcoming Quidditch game.

"Are you nervous about taking on Slytherin after their last match?" Remus questioned James, referring to Ravenclaw's astonishing loss. Remus had recently returned from a night in the Shrieking Shack, but although he still had heavy circles under his eyes, he peered at James with genuine interest.

"I'm not worried," James answered him, running his hand through his mess of dark hair while they passed a cluster of girls. "Vanity hasn't been able to find a good replacement Chaser for Malfoy this year, and she has nothing on Morgan's experience with Captaining."

"But we're still behind from the game against Hufflepuff," Peter noted, chewing on his fingers. "We have to win by over 300 points for a chance at the Cup!"

"Don't worry—Frank, King, and I are looking better than ever!" James assured him. "It's all a matter of staying ahead of Slytherin long enough so that Morgan can catch the Snitch without having to wait for us to pull ahead."

"But suppose she doesn't catch it," Peter brought up.

"Oh, don't be such a wet blanket, Peter!" Sirius admonished. "When has she ever missed the Snitch? If you stopped worrying so much, maybe James could concentrate on winning."

Reddening, Peter lowered his head while the four continued down the road, and they soon spied James' parents standing near the entrance of the village. Waving, they picked up their pace and met up with them near the main street.

"Happy birthday, James!" James' mother exclaimed, hugging him before he could duck out of her way. Stifling laughs, his roommates waited as she let go of him and James' father clapped his son on the shoulder.

"How are your classes going?" he asked the boys after giving James a ruffle of his hair, which James quickly ducked out of. "You're not preparing for exams already, I hope?"

"Tell that to Professor McGonagall," Sirius complained, letting out a hefty sigh. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say she thought that the end-of-the-year exams were in a few weeks, not a few months."

"Well, I hope that you have more time to study after completing your month of detention," James' mother responded, glancing at Sirius and Peter as she placed her hands on her hips.

Groaning, James said, "Mum, we've talked about this! My mates aren't your kids!"

"Of course, I'm only teasing!" she laughed, making Sirius grin as Peter looked up from the ground. "Your parents didn't treat you too harshly, did they?" she asked them.

Shrugging, Peter grunted noncommittally while Sirius shook his head. "Nah, they didn't even send a letter. I figure that they're getting tired of spending money on the owl post every time I step out of line."

"Well, we're not here to give you a hard time," James' father told him, wrapping his arm around James' shoulders and raising him into the air with a single squeeze. "It's time for a birthday celebration!"

"We didn't bring anything from home," James' mother told her son. "We figured that Hogsmeade has anything you could want, so we'll buy you whatever you fancy."

"Really?"

"Consider it an apology for putting off our shopping until now," his father answered, chuckling at his eager expression.

"Let's go to Zonko's first!" James exclaimed before off towards the joke shop on the other side of the street.

After an hour or so of excited browsing, James and his friends finally exited Zonko's Joke Shop with sacks of presents that James' father had bought for each of them ("No party is complete without favors," he had told the other boys when they tried to refuse his offer). Stopping by Honeydukes afterwards, they each received a Pumpkin Pasty before continuing to the Three Broomsticks Inn, although James insisted on taking a short detour down the street that he and Sirius had explored during their last visit. When they neared Dogweed and Deathcap, they found the store just the same as they had left it: decrepit and abandoned, though this time without the beady-eyed presence of the ravens to watch their approach. Not entirely surprised, James trudged back to the main street of Hogsmeade with the others and greeted Madam Rosmerta at the entrance of the Three Broomsticks.

"How are you doing this morning?" the barmaid called out to the group as they entered, raising a hand in greeting.

"Just fine, thank you!" James' father answered as they headed towards an empty table. "We'll be with you in a moment, all right?"

Nodding, Rosmerta waved them on while they settled down at a circular table near the far corner of the expansive room, quickly finishing their Pumpkin Pasties with bites. Glancing at James' parents to make sure that they were not watching, Sirius quickly wiped his mouth with the tablecloth as James' mother turned her face around the room.

"It's been nearly sixty years since I've been to the Three Broomsticks! My, how things change! It's a lot bigger than I remember it, but it's still as cozy as ever. Look there, Fleamont! Do you remember how full the beer barrels got just before the holidays?"

Glancing towards the front of the inn where his wife was pointing, James' father scratched the bald spot on his crown. "Yes, how could I forget? I once sparred with another Gryffindor in here, and the place nearly flooded when one of his spells went awry."

"Why were you dueling him?" Peter inquired.

"Oh, it was one of those silly, schoolboy quarrels," he replied, brushing the question off. "He called me 'Fleamange' in front of my crush, and I had to blast him off of his feet."

Turning to his mother, James asked, "Do you remember that?"

"Oh, I wasn't his crush," she answered, drumming her fingers on the tabletop as she cocked an eyebrow at her husband.

Raising his hands, James' father shrugged. "What can I say? She was the prettiest girl in her year, and very popular, too! You'll recall Pollyandra Zabini, dear—she certainly had her fingers around all of us boys at the school. She had nothing on you, of course, and I eventually came to my senses," he consoled, giving his wife a quick peck on the lips.

Giving a slight harrumph, she complained, "You only noticed me once I asked you out myself, no thanks to that clueless lump of meat bouncing around in your skull."

"You asked him out first?" Remus asked, ignoring the moans from James and Sirius.

"Fleamont had quite the charm about him," she replied, smiling despite herself. "He was a better dueler than any of the other boys in Gryffindor, all thanks to his fiery personality and short temper. More than one of my roommates had a fancy for him, though it would take something a mite stronger than a full-grown Erumpent to pound some level of perception into his head."

"Actually, I attribute most of my skill to the name-calling," James' father corrected, grinning. "But what she says about my brainpower is more or less on point."

"In fact, if it wasn't for me, that hair potion of yours would have never gotten off the ground," James' mother told him, to which he shook his head and sighed.

"Wait a second," Sirius interjected, leaning forward. "If you made your fortune off of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion, why does James' hair always look like it just came out of a windstorm?"

"Because he won't let us anywhere near that eyesore of his with a bottle of my creation in hand," James' father replied, scowling at his son.

"I've told you a thousand times, I don't want to lose all my hair thanks to that slimy juice you try to rub into it!" James protested.

"What, do you think you'll end up like me?" his father joked, rubbing the top of his shiny scalp and making the other boys laugh. "The only reason that I'm balding is because I didn't come up with Sleekeazy's sooner, I tell you! It's a marvel!" Looking at the others, he told them, "You should see our family pictures from when James was eight years old. He couldn't refuse my treatment then, and his hair was the best part of the photographs."

"Dad!" James groaned again, laying his head on the table as the others continued laughing.

"And you'd think with all my talent at potion-making that James would earn better marks from Professor Slughorn," James' father added, jokingly raising his eyebrow at his son.

"He has it out for me, I know it!" James argued. "Besides, you couldn't Transfigure an acorn into a sapling if you used a Maturing Charm!"

"I suppose that's true," James' father admitted, but he winked at the other boys before standing up. "I think it's about time we ordered a few drinks for the table. How does a round of butterbeer sound?" When they all voiced their enthusiasm, he added, "I'm thinking about a tankard of mulled mead myself. Since it's your birthday, James, I might let you have a sip if you behave."

"Can I?" James asked, sitting up.

"Fleamont, he's still underage," James' mother reminded her husband. "This isn't our home, you know. Someone might find out."

"Not if no one tells," he responded, putting his finger to his lips. Stifling their giggles, the other boys watched as James' mother stood up and sighed.

"I'd better accompany him lest he gets us all into trouble," she explained, and she took her husband's arm so they could both walk to the bar.

As the boys waited for their drinks, Peter began examining a pocket Sneakoscope that he had gotten at Zonko's while the others watched him silently. After a minute or so, James looked up to see if his parents had gotten their butterbeers yet, but he instead spotted a familiar figure just a few tables away, partially concealed in the dark corner of the room. Squinting, James tried to make out Abraham Grayson's features through the dark smoke of his cigar, but all he could decipher was his stone-cold eyes fixed on something ahead of him.

"Hey, look!" James prodded Sirius, nudging him in the side and pointing towards Grayson's table. "It's the bloke who bought Dogweed and Deathcap!"

"Who?" Peter asked, abandoning his Sneakoscope to search through the crowd.

"Over there!" James told him. "He's the one with the big cloak and the cigar." Following James' gaze, the others watched Grayson wordlessly for a few moments.

"He looks scary," Peter finally noted. "Do you think he's angry?"

Glancing along Grayson's unbroken line of sight, Remus tilted his head. "It looks like he's staring at Professor Val. Or is it Professor Flannegin? I can't tell."

Looking to the side, James noticed the two Hogwarts professors for the first time; it seemed as if they had been sitting together for quite some time, and Flannegin wore a wide smile that James normally attributed to Professor Val. They had occupied a private table against the wall, and Val held her chin in her hand as Professor Flannegin rambled on with vibrant gestures. Interested, James discovered that he could overhear their conversation without having to strain too hard.

". . . but why stop there?" Flannegin asked Val, chuckling to himself. "He seemed to think that his theory would solve the discrepancies of Burg's Laws, but he wouldn't admit that his argument opened up a whole slew of other problems, not the least of which—" Breaking off, he tilted his head much like a gull while Professor Val slowly swirled her mug of mulberry mead. Leaning forward, he inquired, "Valerie, are you all right?"

"Oh!" she replied, sitting up straighter and meeting his eyes. "Yes, I'm fine. I'm just . . . lost in thought, I guess."

Nodding in an unconvincing gesture of understanding, Flannegin stared at his own drink for a moment before speaking again. "If you don't mind me saying, you haven't been yourself since . . . well, not since . . . you know."

Glancing away rapidly, James and his friends tried to ignore the conversation, but they could not drown out their professors' voices now that they had started listening in. "I'm sorry, Eadward," Professor Val finally answered after a pause, sighing and adjusting her position. "It's been a long month."

"Oh, don't misunderstand me—I'm not frustrated," he quickly replied, pushing his broad-rimmed glasses up his nose. "It's perfectly normal that you would be responding this way. I would likely be going through the same emotional patterns in your position, although I wouldn't necessarily be surprised by the situation."

Looking upwards sharply, Val stared at him as he continued. "Of course, given the inherent dangers involved with the Auror Department," Flannegin said, "the probability of a colleague getting hurt or perishing is tragically high. It simply comes with the occupation, which is part of the reason why I chose to become an instructor as opposed to accepting an opening at the Ministry's Improper Use of Magic Office. Even though it's vastly different than the Auror Office, it seemed altogether too precarious a position, and looking back, I have no regrets pertaining to my decision. Not to say that your career choice wasn't the right one in your case, seeing as each person has a unique set of strengths, but your reaction to your coworker's unfortunate death calls into question the vitality of your mettle, and—"

"My mettle?" Val suddenly interrupted, eyeing Flannegin darkly. "I was under the impression that my 'emotional patterns' were to be expected."

"Well, of course," Professor Flannegin responded, apparently quite unaware of his companion's irritation, "but there comes a point in every career when one must take a step back and reexamine his or her calling. Why, just a few weeks ago I read an article in _Conjurers' Journal_ where Muggle-Relations Director Matthias Pliny lays out the benefits of adjusting one's personal schedule—"

"I read the article," Val interrupted again, standing and picking up her coat from the back of her chair, "and quite frankly, I didn't find it very illuminating."

Sitting back, Flannegin blinked as Professor Val pulled on her coat. "Where are you going?"

"I don't think it should really matter—after all, I face dangers every day on the job," she answered. "Maybe I just want to test my mettle."

As she turned to leave, Professor Flannegin finally seemed to grasp her annoyance, and he shot out of his chair. "Wait, Valerie, I didn't mean it like that!"

"And what's more, I believe I understand quite a bit more about the Auror Department than you do," she added over her shoulder. "I think it's time you recognized that." Pausing briefly before she could walk out of hearing range, she added, "And by the way, my 'colleague' was named Obadiah."

Heading out, she slowed long enough to place a few Knuts in front of Madam Rosmerta, who collected the money with a sidelong glance at the exiting professor. As the bell rang to signal Val's departure, Grayson, who had not taken his eyes off of Val throughout the entire conversation, stood up with surprising speed for someone his size and stepped through the crowded room towards the door. Almost immediately afterwards, Peter nearly dropped his Sneakoscope as it began whirring and beeping, drawing a few glances from the nearby patrons. Not seeming to notice the unexpected noise, Professor Flannegin remained standing as he stared at the door; eventually, he muttered a small expletive under his breath and abandoned his mug, slowly ambling towards the exit with his hands in his robes' pockets.

Desperately trying to muffle the still-whistling Sneakoscope, Peter shoved it deep into his pocket as several other people glared at him. It stopped whizzing after a few seconds, and he relaxed only to jump a little when the shrill noise started up again, and Sirius and Remus frowned at him with the rest of the customers. On the other side of the room, a door leading to a private room opened and let in Barnaby Bucklot, along with another, rather watchful-looking wizard behind him. James only got a short glimpse of the man's milky eyes before he turned and exited through yet another doorway into the alleyway, leaving Bucklot to twirl a silver-studded cane as he strutted towards the bar.

"'Scuse me," he told James' parents as they turned from the counter with six large mugs of butterbeer in their hands. Tossing a Sickle onto the bar, Bucklot took a seat on one of the nearest stools and made a valiant effort to toss his feathery hair out of his eyes. "Your finest pimple, if you please!" he told Madam Rosmerta with a hearty upward thrust of his cane and a wink, and she turned away to fill a Scotch with a shake of her head.

"It won't stop whistling!" Peter whispered to the others at his table, now practically sitting on the Sneakoscope to keep it quiet.

"Just throw it out," James advised. "It's probably a faulty model."

"But where should I get rid of it?" Peter asked.

"Give it here," Sirius offered, holding out his hand, and Peter hurriedly tossed the top into his palm. Moving swiftly, Sirius brought the Sneakoscope down to the table and smashed it open. Springs popping, it beeped weakly before dying out, its flashing lights extinguishing.

"What was that?" James' father asked when he and his wife returned to the table, nodding at the broken Sneakoscope as he passed out the butterbeers.

"Just a pocket Sneakoscope," Sirius answered, handing it back to Peter. "It's busted."

"Oh, bad luck," James' mother sympathized. "Do you want us to get you another one?"

"I'd rather not, thanks," Peter replied, staring at the mess of painted metal in his palm. "I don't think they really work, anyway."

"Well, shall we?" James' father asked, raising his mug. Nodding, the others lifted their own drinks and waited while James' father cleared his throat. "To James—and broken Sneakoscopes."

Grinning, the others echoed his toast and knocked their mugs together before taking long gulps. Setting his down, Peter let out a small burp and flushed as the others chuckled, but he was outdone a moment later by Sirius and then James, drawing muffled giggles from Remus as James' parents tried and failed to give the boys disapproving looks. In the end, they were all laughing openly as the other patrons sent them barely-disguised glares.


	13. Lucky Visitors

**Lucky Visitors**

In the weeks following the trip to Hogsmeade, tensions ran high between Gryffindor and Slytherin—at least, more than they usually did. Most of the school seemed to think that the Gryffindor Quidditch team did not stand a chance in the battle for the Cup, seeing how far they had fallen behind, and at times, the Gryffindor team seemed to believe this as well. A sort of mad fervor had taken permanent root behind Morgan's fiery gaze, and James considered asking about her health during their practices, but he always thought better of it whenever there came a rare free moment between the two of them.

Fortunately, Easter week proved a much-needed chance to relax with the absence of classes, although the slowly approaching end-of-the-year exams once again gave James and his roommates reason to complain. Even Professor Binns, who usually gave his students no more attention than if they were a couple of Horklumps, issued a monstrous essay about Count Arachno Alfhard and his fleeting relationship with Callula Muffet. The class was supposed to discuss their short-lived romance and explain what impact it had on the wizarding world's understanding of vampires, but it took all of James' willpower to simply stay awake while writing it.

On a cloudy Wednesday morning in the Great Hall, James was trying to ignore Remus' steadily scratching quill as best he could while he battled Sirius back and forth with Seize-and-Pull Charms, which they were using on their Housemates' platters from across the table. Entertained by the first years' cries of annoyance, they did not notice the incoming flood of owls bearing the morning's mail until the hooting became impossible to miss. Lowering his wand, James waited on the edge of his seat as Hardwin dropped a fat sack full of chocolate eggs, which spilled out of the bag directly after hitting the table.

"Excellent!" James exclaimed, quickly unwrapping the sky-blue tinfoil from one of the chocolates and popping it into his mouth. Afterwards, he picked up the letter that had fallen out of the sack as the other boys eyed the eggs eagerly.

"Can I have some, James?" Peter asked, and James waved his hand invitingly.

"They're from my parents," he told the others after having read the contents of the note. "They say that they're coming for the game."

As Peter quickly scooped a handful of chocolate eggs onto his plate, James watched Sirius where he sat engrossed in a letter that he had received from a scrawny tawny owl just a moment before. Knowing that Sirius' relatives normally sent letters in the form of Howlers, James waited for his friend to finish reading until Sirius let out a piercing laugh and ripped out a photograph from the envelope.

"Andromeda just had her baby!" he announced, showing the picture to James. It was a colored photograph; the chubby infant curled its feet as its mess of thick hair slowly turned from a light shade of strawberry-blonde to a deep mauve color.

"Its hair is changing colors!" James pointed out, gaping.

"She's a Metamorphmagus!" Sirius explained, puffing out his chest. "Her hair started changing color a few minutes after the birth, and she's already learning to shift her appearance! Just watch!"

Leaning closer to the photograph, James waited until the baby's nose changed almost imperceptibly to form a bulbous lump on the tip, which quickly disappeared again when she sneezed, causing half of her hair to flash auburn. Sliding the photograph towards the others, Sirius tried to capture Remus' attention with a wave while Peter leaned in for a closer look at the photograph.

"Look at the baby, Remus!" Sirius insisted, and Remus flashed a quick, upwards glance at the photo.

"Cute," he responded before returning to his essay. Frowning a bit, Sirius sat back and flicked a Seize-and-Pull Charm at Remus' parch,ent, causing it to jerk out of his grasp and crash into Hardwin. Ignoring his pet's retaliatory squawk, James turned to Sirius.

"What's her name?"

"Nymphadora Helena Tonks," he answered with a royal beam. "Andromeda's first kid, and things are already looking up! No one can say that Muggle-borns are a bad match if the kids come out with Transfiguring hair, eh?"

Smiling widely, Sirius turned towards the Slytherin table and waved at Regulus. After pointing to his letter, Sirius cupped his hands over his mouth and yelled, "ANDROMEDA'S HAD HER BABY, REG! HER NAME'S NYMPHADORA!"

Horrified, Regulus quickly glanced at his Housemates, some of whom gave him irritated glances as if he was at fault for his brother's outburst—or, more likely, his cousin's Muggle-born marriage. Equally annoyed, Professor McGonagall gave Sirius a warning glare from the High Table, but James thought that Dumbledore sent them a wink before raising his goblet for a drink.

Sirius' exclamation in the Great Hall only amplified the rising tensions between Gryffindor and Slytherin, which came to a height during Potions on Friday. Whenever Slughorn turned his back, Wilkes and his friends would smirk at James and spell out "Potter and the pole" in the air with the Scribbulus Spell, to which James would reply with various retorts of his own, including several rude words that made Lily glare back at him from her desk. His replies always managed to garner a few giggles from his classmates, and the hapless Professor Slughorn looked as if he had taken a large swig of one of the students' Confusing Concoctions by the end of the period.

The next morning, the Great Hall was abuzz with enthusiastic discourse regarding the upcoming match, even the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs adding to the dialogue. Although James did his best to ignore the chattering around him, he could not help but feel the oppressive sense of anticipation that pre-game excitement always gave him.

"Good luck today, James!" Kaitlyn Fulbright called out as she walked past the Gryffindor table with her twin, and James waved in acknowledgement as they seated themselves next to Mary MacDonald. Looking down at his plate, Frank absent-mindedly chewed a forkful of beans across from James while his roommates tried valiantly to cheer him up. Inseparable as always, Michael and Raul were exchanging Chocolate Frog cards underneath the table, staring blankly at their hands as they ignored their thrice-emptied plates of food. King had not yet arrived, but Joseph had gathered his hair in a tight fist, and both Adah and Jorkins kept their eyes on Morgan as she scowled at her plate like it had personally insulted her. Both of them had put up their hair in ponytails to match Morgan's trademark look, although neither of theirs reached quite as far down their backs as the Captain's.

"You're going to do great, Morgan, I can feel it!" Adah told her friend when she gave a particularly vicious curling of her lip. Patting Morgan's back, Adah insisted, "You'll walk away from this a two-time champion!"

Next to her, Jorkins drummed her fingers and held her pudgy chin in her hand. "Yeah, I wouldn't worry if I were you," she piped up. "I heard that Vanity still hasn't recovered from her collision last year, and everyone can tell that Yun has a curved spine."

Making a grunting sound, Morgan continued to stare straight ahead. Hoping to alleviate some of the nervousness, Sirius leaned forward.

"Do you think one of you could knock Vanity out of the air again this year?" he joked. "If you try, you might be able to take out all of the opposing Chasers before the game even starts!" When everyone slowly turned to stare at him, he shrugged. "It won't seem like a bad idea once the match starts. We might as well keep all of the options in mind."

"We don't have to cheat to win, Sirius," Frank responded with a reprimanding glare, but before anyone could say anything more, King entered the Great Hall and approached the rest of the team.

"Vanity's readying by the pitch," he relayed, meeting Morgan's eyes. "I believe she was holding a list of plays to go over with her team."

"That means that they're scared," Dill interjected, and the others turned as Remus nodded.

"They know that their Chasers don't stand a chance against our team, so they're trying to come up with ways to hold off you three while they catch the Snitch," he agreed, nodding at James, King, and Frank. "Their only chance is to end the match as soon as possible."

Sighing, Morgan stood up from the table. "He's right. We know the Slytherins aren't above fouls, so I want you all to be on your top forms today. If we're alert, they can't catch us off guard." Nodding, James murmured assent with the rest of the team. "It's all a matter of timing," she added, giving James and the other Chasers a pointed look. "Just do your job, and don't worry about anything else. I'll keep Yun from the Snitch until we're ahead by 300 points."

"Let's go before I spew," Joseph suggested, standing up. "I can't stand sitting around any longer."

"We'll see the rest of you there," King told the others when they made no effort to move. "Don't be late."

"See you later!" Jorkins called out to King, her voice jumping up an octave as she wiggled her fingers at him. Not changing his impassionate stare, he turned and followed Morgan and Joseph out of the Great Hall, leaving Adah to grimace at Jorkins.

Soon after, Michael and Raul broke out of their shared daze and headed for the pitch. A few minutes later, James accompanied Frank out of the Great Hall while their roommates waved them goodbye. Walking in silence for most of the way, they crossed the yawning field outside of the castle, still dewy and glistening from the previous night's thunderstorm. Only a few, wispy clouds decorated the shining sky, and the air had a slight crispness to it, signaling a perfect day for a Quidditch match.

"At least it's not raining anymore, eh?" Frank asked James, who laughed despite himself.

"Just try to keep me in line so that I don't run into another pole, okay?" he replied, signaling Frank's turn to laugh. "I've been getting enough grief from my roommates about it."

"I just hope that we can wrap this up quickly," Frank said, gesturing at the pitch. "My parents came to watch, and I don't fancy hearing my mum's complaints if we lose this one."

"We won't lose," James told him quickly. "Their Chasers are no match for us, and Morgan's never missed the Snitch before."

"Just watch out for stray Bludgers," Frank advised, and James nodded in understanding just before the tall, bony form of Mrs. Longbottom appeared over the heads of the crowded people near the stands. Behind her stood a shorter man with Frank's curly hair, largely dwarfed by his wife's powerful presence and feathered hat as she strode over to James and Frank.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready, Franklin?" she interrogated, giving him a piercing look. "I shouldn't have reached the pitch before you!"

"The match doesn't start for another half-hour, Mum," Frank pointed out, giving James a look. "We have plenty of time."

Turning towards James with frightening severity for such a thinly-framed woman, she said distractedly, "Oh yes, isn't this your friend from the hospital wing? Doing better, I presume?"

"Much," James replied, and she sniffed.

"Hopefully, you aren't keeping the two of you from making it to your own game on time," she accused before turning to her son again. "We'll be at the bottom of the stands, closest to the pitch. We don't want to miss a thing. In fact," she continued, taking his arm, "since you're late as it is, why don't you escort us up to our seats so you can find us after the game?"

"But, Mum—" Frank protested.

"No objections!" she interrupted, pulling him along as she gave a backwards glance at James. "And as for you, I think you'd better help your professor back there," she suggested, nodding towards a nearby staircase. "He seems a bit out of his element."

Staring at James in a silent plea for help, Frank was dragged away with his parents, and James turned around in the direction that Mrs. Longbottom had indicated. He immediately spotted Professor Kettleburn stuck halfway up the flight of stairs, his left leg-stump caught in between two wooden slats, and his heart dropped at the thought of getting him unstuck. Suppressing the urge to turn back, James dragged his feet towards the hapless wizard, who was grasping the side of the staircase with his one arm in an attempt to pull himself out of his predicament.

"Do you need help, sir?" James asked with a sigh, and Kettleburn looked up with a jump.

"Oh, Potter! I didn't see you there! You can be as quiet as a Demiguise someti—well, if you think you could," he said, changing subjects abruptly. Grabbing his outstretched arm, James hoisted Kettleburn out of the stands with a ka-lump, making the professor stagger to the side.

"Stupendous! Thank you, lad!" he said, wiggling his left stump before setting it down on the stair. Hesitating, he asked, "Do you mind . . . I mean to say, can you lend me a hand the rest of the way up? I'm still not used to stairs—I even requested an office on the ground floor so that I didn't have to deal with them."

After chancing a glance back towards the locker rooms, James suppressed a sigh and nodded. "All right, but I'd better make this quick. I've still got to put on my uniform."

"Excellent! Thank you, my boy!" Kettleburn told him, beaming, and they struggled up together to the top of the stadium.

"So," James panted in between steps, "which team are you rooting for?"

"Why, yours, of course!" Professor Kettleburn laughed. "Can't you tell?"

Staring at him blankly, James watched until Kettleburn's face fell, and the professor motioned for them to halt so he could use his hand to reach behind his shoulder-length cloak. Pulling out a red-knitted scarf with a small lion stitched into the hemming, he wrapped it around his neck and then placed his arm back around James to continue their upwards climb.

"I never did like Slytherin much, not after their House beat mine for the Cup back in my day," Professor Kettleburn explained. "Quidditch was always the highlight of my time at Hogwarts as a schoolboy, aside from Care of Magical Creatures, and I never could seem to shake the old competitive streak. I'm glad I get to see you play now—I must say, your team hasn't looked so good in over a decade."

Breaking off, he pulled James back and unwrapped his arm to point at Professor Flannegin where he sat down a row of benches, his hands clasped in front of him as he stared searchingly out at the field. "Let's stop here! I'll join Eadward; haven't seen him for a week or two."

Obeying his instructions, James led him towards the Arithmancy professor, who glanced up when Kettleburn greeted him. "Eadward! Mind if I join you?"

"Oh, no," Flannegin answered, standing up to give room for the two as they approached. "Make yourself comfortable."

"Is Horace here?" Professor Kettleburn asked as James settled him down on the bench. "We have a small bet going, you see, and I don't want him forgetting it again!"

"No, I believe that he's on the other side of the pitch," Flannegin replied, looking out at the field once again. "Supporting his House, you know."

"Ah, yes," Kettleburn agreed, bumping his right stump against the seating in front of them with a creak. "What about Valerie? I haven't seen her for a while."

Losing all light in his eyes suddenly, Professor Flannegin pressed his lips together. "Er—she couldn't make it. Her first year teaching, you know. The end of the year really sneaks up on you."

"Oh well, isn't that the truth!" Kettleburn laughed, finally falling backwards onto the bench with a thump.

The loud noise frightened a couple of Hufflepuff students in front of them, but everyone within the area was soon distracted by a cacophony of loud cries coming somewhere from the distance. Everyone in the stadium looked up just in time to watch as a cloud of cawing ravens turned the atmosphere black, almost blotting out the sun as they journeyed across the sky. Drowning out the confused exclamations of the students beneath them, they continued onward until scattering just above the Gryffindor goalposts, alighting on every balcony and jutting surface they could find. Unsure of what the unexpected spectators could mean, the crowd kept chattering excitedly while the birds perched around the stadium, squawking sporadically.

Unnerved, Professor Flannegin stared at a pair of ravens a short distance from his seat and Professor Kettleburn laughed heartedly. "Don't mind them! They just want a little bit of fun, I reckon! Ravens are very intelligent birds, and they're said to be a symbol of good luck. Judging by the looks of the pitch, I'd say that this game is going to be a success!"

"A success for who?" Flannegin mumbled under his breath, continuing to eye his new companions warily. Looking his way, one of the birds cawed accusingly, and he jumped slightly.

Too concerned with what Morgan's reaction might be if he arrived late to worry about the ravens, James rushed down the stands and arrived at the locker rooms just in time to slip into his protective gear before the match. A few minutes after he had joined the rest of the team, he marched out onto the stadium to line up with the Slytherins in the center of the pitch, where Instructor Zunderfield observed the traditional shaking of hands. Both Morgan and Vanity released each other's grips as soon as they had touched, wearing sour expressions as both teams' players stood silently to the side.

Watching while Marcus Mimbleton whispered to Malfoy's replacement, Evan Rosier, James narrowed his eyes as the latter nodded curtly. They seemed to be looking towards King where he stood impassively behind Morgan, and James waited until the two teams had broken apart before approaching him.

"I think that Mimbleton and Rosier are going to try and take you out," he warned King as they mounted their brooms.

"I'll watch them," he thanked, sounding nevertheless unconcerned as he pushed off into the air. Following him, James lifted into position and stared Rosier down.

 _Remember, we need to be more than 300 points ahead_ , he told himself.

"Ready yourselves!" Zunderfield yelled from underneath the Captains, still not having flown into the air on his own broomstick. In another instant, he had reached down and unlatched the box containing the Quidditch balls, and the Bludgers soared upwards before he could send the Quaffle after them with a powerful throw.

Immediately taking off after the zipping form of the Golden Snitch, Yun and Morgan drew alongside each other while King dived for the Quaffle at the same time as Vanity, catching it just before she could reach it. Ducking underneath Mimbleton, James drifted to the right and waited outside of the Slytherins' reach so as to catch the Quaffle when King passed it to him, and he hurriedly gained speed once the bright red ball was in his grasp. On the alert, he swerved when one of the opposing Beaters blocked his path to swing at an approaching Bludger, and he dodged both her and the ball on his ascent to the goalposts. Faking a left turn, he threw the Quaffle downwards to Frank, who swiftly rose and lobbed the ball through one of the hoops.

Flying by Frank's side to congratulate him, James glanced over his shoulder at both of the Seekers to see how their search was going; the Snitch had effectively disappeared for the time being, because Morgan and Yun had separated ways and were circling the pitch like owls searching for a midnight meal. Glad that the Snitch was temporarily safe, James high-fived Frank, but a whooshing sound caused him to duck instinctively as a Bludger raced a few meters from him in the direction of King, who performed a mid-air backflip to dodge it.

"Hey!" James yelled up at the Slytherin Beater sitting in the air above him. "Watch where you're hitting those!"

Shrugging, the Beater simply flew towards the other end of the field, and the Gryffindor Chasers glowered at each other before lining up for the continuation of the game. Although Vanity started with the Quaffle, King soon caught up to her and attempted to steer her away from the Gryffindor goalposts, culminating in a fierce bout of elbow-shoving from the Slytherin Captain until Instructor Zunderfield finally blew his whistle and let Gryffindor have a free shot. King made it easily, and the Slytherins grew visibly more frustrated with each passing play. Becoming increasingly competitive, they earned several more fouls in the course of an hour.

"Hey, do you want to take this one?" Frank asked James, wiping the sweat from his forehead and offering him the Quaffle for a free shot. Slytherin had just incurred another penalty, but the Gryffindor Chasers were beginning to slow down after their initial advantage, and both teams could sense it. Currently, Gryffindor stood 190 points ahead of their rival, and they had a lot of work to do before Morgan could catch the Golden Snitch and secure the Cup.

Looking over his shoulder at the Seekers, still nearly immobile in their search, James accepted the Quaffle with a weary nod. Seeming to sense his lethargy, the Slytherin Keeper smirked and raised his gloved hands to block the shot. Glancing towards his mount, James noted with a small bit of satisfaction that the Keeper rode a Comet 260, which was nothing in comparison to James' Airwake. As soon as the other players had retreated behind him, James drifted to the left as if aiming for the corresponding goalpost, and the Keeper mirrored his movements before James suddenly jerked to the right. Unprepared, the Keeper missed the Quaffle as Gryffindor scored another ten points.

As the crowd roared with approval, however, James looked up towards the commentator's box as Eric Thompson erupted with a fresh stream of dialogue. "Wait, it looks like Yun's spotted something! He's diving, and McGonagall follows after . . . Yes, I can see it! They're after the Snitch!"

Almost feeling himself pale, James watched as Morgan shot after Yun towards an indistinct blur of gold near the stands, and he nearly missed King's warning shout.

"James, look out!"

Glancing over his shoulder, James spotted a jet-black Bludger racing towards him, and he dove before he had time to think. When the ball raced past him, Raul appeared out of nowhere and smacked at it with his bat, sending it across the field.

"You all right there?" he called to James, who waved back before looking at King and Frank. Meeting their eyes, he knew that they were all thinking the same thing: they had to pull ahead of Slytherin by a lot of points, and quickly.

"Hey! Get back in the game, Gryffindor!" Evan Rosier yelled at the Chasers, waving the Quaffle above his head derisively as he swished past. Breaking apart, James and the others resumed the match, all the while trying to ignore the thundering yells of the spectators as they watched the Seekers' flight.

"Over here!" King called as James intercepted the Quaffle, and James quickly passed the ball to his teammate, who had a clear path to the goalposts. Swooping within throwing range King scored a goal and retrieved the Quaffle even before it could fall to the ground, putting it back into play. It took a few seconds before Thompson noticed the goal from the commentator's box, only announcing the score when Professor McGonagall prompted him from behind.

"Oh, sorry, Professor! Ten more points to Gryffindor! Meanwhile, the Seekers have gotten agonizingly close to the Snitch . . ."

Spurred on by the amplified voice, the Gryffindor Chasers forgot all their exhaustion while they zipped around the pitch, speeding by the other players. Michael and Raul began to work in overtime, blocking hits from the opposing Beaters to protect James and the other Chasers as they flew feverishly around them. Back and forth the Quaffle soared across the field, first carried by the Slytherins and then by the Gryffindors, and James was the first to capture the ball every time that Joseph deflected a shot from the Slytherins, thanks mostly to his quality broomstick model. Racing circles around the enemy Chasers, the Gryffindors mostly kept on the Slytherin side of the pitch, and they managed to score a few more goals as time seemed to speed up around them.

Eventually, James paused long enough to glance back up at the scoreboard, and he was surprised to see that only a minute and a half had passed, and yet they were ahead of Slytherin at a shocking 390 to 90. They were so close, and yet they had to score at least once more before Morgan could catch the Snitch, and it did not look like they would have enough time. Already, the two Seekers were just meters away from the Snitch, and they both had their hands outstretched as they jostled each other as forcefully as they dared.

"James!" King exclaimed, drawing him out of his daze. "Let's make this quick!"

Nodding, James dove towards Vanity as she tried to maneuver past the Chasers with the Quaffle, but they met her halfway to the ground and blocked her path, forcing her to toss the ball to Rosier. Just before it could meet his waiting hands, King snatched it and headed for the Slytherin goalposts with James and Frank just behind him. As Michael smacked a Bludger away from the oncoming Chasers, James kept his eyes focused ahead, but he sensed trouble as Mimbleton suddenly shot across King's path and parted his arms.

"Down here!" James shouted, and King obeyed his command a moment before Mimbleton reached him and crashed headlong into the sixth-year.

As they tumbled downwards, James did not have time to chance a look at their descent; concentrating solely on the goalposts in front of him, he was surprised by a sudden outburst of loud cawing that drowned out the sound of the roaring fans, and he witnessed to his horror a swarm of black ravens rising from the stands and into his path of flight. Apparently having decided to leave the pitch after their initial appearance, they began to flock in front of the players, and James saw the Slytherin Keeper swatting angrily at the onslaught of feathery bodies. In just a few moments, the birds had overtaken James as well, and he ducked protectively over his Airwake as he continued flying forward, feeling the ravens thud against his uniform while their talons whipped at his uncovered face. Refusing to lose sight of his target, James pressed on until it became nearly impossible to see through the flapping barrage of wings, and he sat up against the pain of snapping beaks and threw the Quaffle forward with as much strength as he could muster. Staring through the black mass, he glimpsed the bright red sphere just as it flew past the Keeper, who was now completely engulfed in the cloud of ravens, and the ball fell through the left goalpost before smacking into a squawking bird.

Hugging his broomstick again, James shut his eyes while the ravens continued to collide with him at a frightening rate. Hearing the clear scrape of talons against his glasses' lenses as the birds attempted to fly past him, he hesitantly opened his eyes to watch the writhing cloud of animals as they continued squawking loudly. By then, almost the entire sky had turned ebony, and James strained to see through the overwhelming blackness until a sudden glint of gold caught his eye. Peering through the limbs of the birds, he spotted the whirring wings of the Golden Snitch stuck between a beak and the tail feathers of two ravens, the delicate sphere buzzing in place as if unsure of where to go next. The Snitch hovered less than a meter away from James, and he considered shouting out to alert the others to its presence, but he soon realized that the effort would be useless against the cries of the ravens around him. In fact, he could not even move due to the suffocating mass of flapping feathers, so he could only stare at the Snitch as it darted back and forth uncertainly.

After what seemed like years, the cloud of ravens started to clear as the birds rose farther into the air, and James could once against see spots of blue in the sky. Heart beating rapidly, he started to inch towards the Snitch where it buzzed just an arm's length away, but he stopped short as a hand suddenly shot out of the feathery blackness and closed around the golden ball.

"No!" James yelled, but his exclamation soon turned into a yell of triumph when Morgan shot up from the ravens, holding her clenched fist above her head and wearing a grin so wide that it almost jumped off of her face. As the birds circled off into the air, the rest of the school seemed to realize what had happened, and they roared with pleasure as the Gryffindor players alighted on the ground and ran to their Captain, lifting her onto their shoulders.

"That's 550 points!" Frank exclaimed, laughing as the scoreboard changed above their heads. "We did it! We won the Cup!"

"Three cheers for Morgan the Merciless!" Michael cried, and they all shouted happily to express their enthusiasm as Instructor Zunderfield landed his broomstick and handed the Quidditch Cup to Morgan. Beaming despite the small scratches lining her face, she lifted the Cup above her head as the spectators rushed into the center of the stadium.

"Morgan, you did it!" Adah cheered as she ran onto the pitch with Jorkins puffing behind her. "I was starting to worry just before the ravens flew off—Yun had the lead, and I don't know what would've happened if he didn't run into them!"

"Thank Merlin for those bloody birds!" Morgan crowed, and her teammates let out ringing laughs before finally setting her down.

"Say," Jorkins began eagerly, "I suppose there'll be a party in the common room after this?" Glancing at King with a red smile, she began, "What do you say that we—"

"I suppose you're right," King interrupted, having survived the onslaught of ravens with only a swelling bruise on his right arm where he had crashed into Mimbleton. Rotating his shoulder, he offered his hand to Morgan. "Do you want to meet up at the party later?"

A smile crept onto her face, and Morgan thrust out the Cup to Frank, who caught it with a grunt. "I'd like that very much," she told King, taking his hand. "I'll have to get ready first. Clean up quickly!" she announced to those gathered around, waving an arm. "We have a party to attend!"

Heading off to the locker room side by side, Morgan and King left Jorkins standing behind them with her mouth hanging open. Ignoring her, Adah joined the stream of students following Frank as he waved the Quidditch Cup over his head and paraded towards the exit. After glancing at Jorkins' unbelieving face once more, James ran off to join his parents and roommates where they were marching after Frank with the other Gryffindors, waving their hands in the air and cheering as loudly as they could manage. Jumping over the heads of the crowd, Frank thrust the Cup over his head again.

"ALL HAIL MORGAN THE MERCILESS! GO, GRYFFINDOR!" he shouted, and the others all echoed his enthusiastic cry.

"GRYFFINDOR! GRYFFINDOR! GRYFFINDOR!"


	14. Unexpected Arrivals

**Unexpected Arrivals**

After a delightful few weeks of celebration, Gryffindor House settled down to prepare for the end-of-year exams with the rest of the school, and James found himself avoiding Peter at all costs. Although Peter first turned to Remus for homework assistance, having learned over the last two years that James and Sirius were of little help, Remus began disappearing in the library for hours at a time just to avoid his pestering. James could not blame him; following an ill-fated encounter with Peter in the common room, he began taking his textbooks out by the lake to read. Partly out of fear of Peter and partly out of boredom, Sirius would sometimes join James outside with his own homework, the result being that neither of them got much done. Instead, they spent most of their efforts in their class periods, although the lessons grew steadily harder with each passing day. If it was not for Sirius cutting off Professor Slughorn after every Potions class, the Gryffindors might have never been able to leave their captivity due to the sheer amount of material they were covering. Conversely, though their Arithmancy homework was harder to understand than ever before, the class periods seemed a bit mellower than usual.

Exam week started with Herbology, which James had little trouble with. Surprisingly, the problems that he did have had nothing to do with Professor Sprout; in less than a month after having caught James, Sirius, and Peter with the stolen Mandrake leaves, Sprout had returned to treating them in her usual fashion. In fact, when a Devil's Snare attempted to snatch Peter during the exam, she even dove forward to save him from an untimely fate, although the ensuing action caused James to nearly lose hold of the slippery Puffapods in his grip. Unfortunately, Alice was not so lucky, and she blushed when the bulbous forms attached themselves to the wooden floor and blossomed instantly. Despite this, Professor Sprout seemed to be in an understanding mood, and she simply provided Alice with a few extra pods while apologizing for the mishap and reprimanding Peter for his carelessness.

When the period ended, James made sure to leave his jar of carefully dried Mandrake leaves in plain view of Professor Sprout, who nodded and smiled at him as he walked out. Following the other Gryffindors, he headed back to the castle and towards the Astronomy Tower, where they would take their next exam.

"Do you think that the Devil's Snare will count against me?" Peter asked the others as they entered through the double doors.

"It won't if Professor Sprout doesn't mind Puffapods on the greenhouse floor," Sirius answered, and James laughed as he remembered how hard they could be to remove.

Shaking his head as Peter stared at the floor, Remus encouraged, "I'm sure it'll be fine. She knows it was an accident, and it's not like you were the one to drop the Puffapods."

"I hope Astronomy goes better," Peter mumbled, and in kicking at the floor, he rammed his toe against an uneven block of stone. "Oi!" he cried, grabbing his foot and hopping around as James and Sirius laughed even harder.

"Hey!" a voice called out from ahead as a door opened farther down the hallway, and Josiah stuck his head out to gesture angrily at the four of them. "Cut out that racket! This is exam week, you know, and some of us are trying to study!"

Once he had slammed the door again, the hallway entered into silence. Shaking his head, Sirius said, "I hope I never become a prefect. They're always so cranky."

"Do you even think there's a remote possibility that Dumbledore will choose you to keep other students in line?" James laughed.

"Hey, at least we'll stay prefect-less together!" Sirius responded. "Still, it would be fun to remove points from people whenever I felt like it. Imagine the laugh we'd get from taking points off Snivellus and the other Slytherins!"

"Prefects can't just take away points on a whim," Remus corrected him while James laughed. "They have to follow rules too, you know."

"Hey, that doesn't stop some of them," Sirius replied, nudging Remus in the ribs. "Personally, I'd get a kick out of finding my brother at odd hours and removing points for his sour attitude. I'd take almost as much pleasure in sorting out James here, too."

"Like you'd be able to catch me," James scoffed. "Everyone knows that I'm the better dueler!"

"When has anyone ever said that?" Sirius huffed back. "Besides, if you fought me, I'd just give you a detention."

"And then I'd wipe your memory and make you forget you ever saw me," James argued.

"What if I hexed you first?"

"That's impossible. Your arm is too short."

"What does the length of my arm have to do with anything?"

"Well, your spell has farther to travel," James explained, holding apart his hands to demonstrate. "Besides, my wand is longer than yours."

"That's rubbish! I have just as far of a reach as you do!"

"In case you haven't noticed, Sirius, I'm the tallest out of all of us."

"No, you're not!"

"Am, too!"

"Are not!"

"Yes, he is," Remus interjected.

"Is not!" Sirius spat. "Here, stand next to me so we can—"

"QUIET!" Josiah yelled from behind the door as they walked past, making Peter stumble over his injured foot again as James and Sirius stifled another chortle.

Throughout the next few days, James did his best to avoid Josiah and any of the other seventh-years, all of whom were on edge due to the demanding upper level exams. More than once, he witnessed Bertha Jorkins yelling at a first-year who had distracted her, a task that she seemed to find much more enjoyable than the reading of her textbooks. James himself could not find the time to rest in the Gryffindor common room between his exams, mostly due to the additional subjects that he and the other third-years had added to their schedules. However, when compared to the soporific experience in the History of Magic exam earlier in the week, Muggle Studies passed rather easily, and James might have even enjoyed it if Peter had not immediately begun to relay the entire test back to him and Sirius out of habit when they finished.

As a whole, however, the week passed by with surprising speed, and soon the third-year Gryffindors only had three more exams left on Friday morning. Following a long night's sleep after the painfully difficult Potions exam, the Gryffindor and Slytherin students gathered in small clusters around a large fence on the castle grounds, all taking notes as rapidly as they could on the breezy Friday morning. In front of them, an unknown number of Chizpurfles were buzzing just below the tips of the grass blades, making whizzing noises as they scurried about their business. Unable to spot the creatures directly due to their incredibly minuscule nature, the students had to make up for this disadvantage by recording details about the animals' surroundings while Professor Kettleburn watched from the fence.

"Just a minute more!" Kettleburn announced, causing the scribbling of the quills to increase in speed. Beside Kettleburn, a few ravens eyed the buzzing grass blades, their heads tilted in interest. "I have a box of Horklumps ready for the next portion, so start thinking ahead. I even managed to procure an Imp for our purposes!"

Groaning in unison, the students jotted down a few more notes while staring at the incredibly dull patch of chirruping grass. Squawking suddenly, one of the ravens swooped down from fence and dove at the Chizpurfles, snatching one of them in its beak with a snap before flying off. Oohing, the students began writing with more fervor as a few of its companions took off and chased the first raven, fighting amongst themselves for the tiny meal.

Unconcerned with the new series of events, Kettleburn glanced behind his students' heads, and James followed his gaze to spot Professor Val walking across the field towards their class. Most of the other students turned around a few moments later, and she hurried to cross the remaining distance as everyone abandoned their quills. Once she had come close enough for James to make out her face, the last raven cawed loudly and nearly tripped over its own talons as it flew off, apparently alarmed by the newcomer.

"I'm so sorry to interrupt," Val told Professor Kettleburn, "but I'm in urgent need of a few Kneazles. My students know to bring their pets to test for poisons and antidotes, but my last group didn't have enough animals to work with. I don't want to make the others share pets."

"I'm happy to help!" Kettleburn proclaimed. "There's a few Kneazles staying at Hagrid's place right now. We can retrieve them while my students start feeding the Horklumps." Turning back to the class, he waved his single arm. "Work quickly, now! I'll be back before you know it!"

Marching towards Hagrid's cabin, he left Professor Val standing beside the Gryffindors. "Bring your pets!" she reminded them before following after Kettleburn.

"What are the chances that the poison will actually work?" Remus whispered to his roommates as they started for the box of Horklumps, and they laughed as the other students sent them odd looks over their shoulders.

A little over half an hour later, the Gryffindors had left the castle grounds and were marching towards the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom for their next exam. Holding Hardwin and Mussmug in their cages, James and Remus tried to keep them as steady as possible as they climbed a winding staircase.

"I hope this is over quickly—I'm starving, and we still have the Arithmancy exam," Sirius complained before throwing a begrudging glance at Peter. "Well, most of us, anyway."

"Defense Against the Dark Arts will be bad enough as it is!" Peter protested, procuring a heavy eye-roll from Sirius. "I still don't have the antidote-test down, and Professor Val might want to test us on disguise. You know I'm hopeless."

"It's not like she'd have us Transfigure ourselves in the classroom," Sirius scoffed.

"I know," Peter replied with a sigh, "but I still don't fancy explaining it on paper."

"I hope that the whole place doesn't erupt with hissing when I enter," Remus pointed out, holding Mussmug's cage as far away from his body as he could. "I've made it through a year of Care of Magical Creatures without anyone finding something odd about me, and I don't want to throw it all away over one exam."

Traveling the rest of the way to the classroom, the four entered to a welcoming smile from Professor Val. "Just take your animals to your desks," she told James and Remus before beckoning to the other two. "I have a couple of choices for you. Do you prefer Kneazles or owls?"

By the time James had set Hardwin next to his desk by the open window, Sirius and Peter had chosen a tawny owl and a cat-like creature with a large, tufted tail. Once Remus had taken his seat, setting the cage in his grasp a good distance away from him, Mussmug curled into a tight, gray ball to snatch a few minutes of sleep while the other students trickled in. Eventually, Lily and her friends appeared, Hillary and Alice with a tabby cat and a toad between the two of them.

When everyone had taken their seats, Professor Val stood and began walking down the row of desks, handing out the exam papers as she did. "We'll have an opportunity later in the exam to test out the antidotes you made over the last month, and I'll be waiting with a batch of professionally-brewed alternatives if yours did not turn out as well as you would have liked."

"Great, Hardwin's going to hate me after this," James whispered to his roommates. "We all know that Evans has the only antidote that's going to work."

"I wonder if those poor Kneazles know what they're getting into," Sirius mused after Professor Val had handed him an exam, and Hardwin rotated his head with an expression resembling worry as the students trained their eyes on the front of the room.

"Make sure to think carefully over the questions on the written portion," Professor Val continued, returning to her desk at the front. "We'll have a practical test after this to see if you remember the spells that you learned over the year, but I don't want you slipping up on theories just because you forgot to read the question all the way through. Does anyone have any last questions? I'll let you begin in a moment if not."

In response, a flutter of wings sounded from outside the open window, and Professor Val turned to look with the rest of the class. A haggard raven had just alighted on the sill, and it turned a beady eye on the students as if they were the ones causing a disturbance. Not more than a second had passed before Mussmug woke up and bristled, hissing viciously as a few of the caged owls by Professor Val's desk started hooting; at almost the exact same moment, James jumped as his forgotten pocket Sneakoscope leapt to life from inside of his robes and began whirring loudly. Unsure of how to react, neither Professor Val nor the students spoke as the raven cocked its head and looked at Val.

Finally, the raven let out a booming caw and plunged into the room. This only added to the commotion of the chittering animals, and Alice let out a scream when the raven careened unsteadily towards her. Covering their heads, the students attempted to shield their faces from the raven's unbalanced flight, but the gesture turned out to be fruitless when the bird dipped in the other direction and swooped towards Professor Val instead. She ducked, but just when it appeared that the raven would miss her completely, its feet suddenly dropped towards the ground in an impossible feat of gravity. Yet as James continued to watch, he realized that the raven was in fact _growing_ ; its quickly-expanding head remained suspended in the air, but its lower body rocketed towards the ground and knocked Professor Val to the floor. Just as its feet made contact with the stone, the raven rotated its shoulders (which it now had) and cracked a joint in its neck, smiling down at Val with a very human row of teeth.

"Got you now," the newly-transformed wizard cackled, a few black feathers falling from his scraggly robes. Val seemed to come to a realization, but when she lunged for her fallen wand, the wizard stepped on her wrist and pulled out his own wand, pointing it at the students over his shoulder without a glance in their direction.

"Give it up, Cleary, or I blow this room to chunks of rock," he commanded greasily, his teeth still parted in a victorious grin. Licking his lips happily, he smirked at her frozen face. "And you know I'll do it, too, even with me inside."

Finally, Val raised her free arm with her palm facing up, and the man quickly dropped to snatch her wand. "Correct choice," he praised, tossing it out of the window and onto the grounds below.

"Who are you?" Lily demanded first, rising to her feet despite her classmates' shock. "Let her go, or we'll—"

"Do you want me to blow your precious professor sky-high?" the wizard snapped, turning to her with fury in his beady eyes. "Drop your weapons, all of you!" Hesitating, the students turned to each other until the wizard lost his patience. "Do it!"

"Throw your wands down," Professor Val spoke up from the ground, not taking her eyes from her captor. Exchanging another series of glances, the class slowly obeyed, throwing their wands onto the ground in front of them. Inside of James' pocket, the Sneakoscope continued spinning wildly.

"Get into the corner, all of you!" the wizard shouted, and the students quickly scuttled into the corner farthest from the door under his direction. Meanwhile, Professor Val carefully backed to the row of owl cages behind her and sat up with her back against them. Meeting her eyes, the raven-turned-wizard smiled another sickening grin and waved his wand dangerously.

"Don't worry, the other one's coming soon," he announced.

Moving his wand hand to the inside of his left forearm, he touched the skin under his sleeve subtly before walking back towards the window and shoving it open even wider. Glancing at the others packed around him, James met similar looks of confusion and terror. Somehow, seeing everyone trembling around him seemed to bolster his own confidence, and he straightened his shoulders and glared at the thin wizard across the room. All of the students' wands lay out of reach under the desks, and the class was too far the door to try to get help. At the moment, however, they did not appear to be in any immediate danger, because their captor seemed to be waiting for something, occasionally glancing at the window while keeping his wand trained on Val.

Finally, after a few minutes that stretched on like hours, a thump sounded from outside the window, and everyone turned to look outside with bated breath. Another, louder thump sounded, and a hand appeared over the windowsill, pulling upwards until another man dragged himself through the opening. Once safely inside the room, he stared at Professor Val and the other wizard with a pair of milky eyes.

"Hello, Cleary," he greeted, not even bothering to crack a smile.


	15. Mussmug's Finest Hour

**Mussmug's Finest Hour**

"A professor now, eh, Cleary?" the first wizard mocked, waving his wand threateningly as his companion walked forward to join him above Professor Val. Although barely more filled-out than the raven-man, the newcomer stood a few inches taller, and James was struck with how similar they looked. Besides the height difference, the only thing telling them apart was the unnaturally pale, milky eyes of the second wizard. Something about his near-colorless gaze seemed familiar to James, and he racked his brain for the foggy memory while Professor Val spoke up.

"Ewan, Milo," she told the milky-eyed wizard and the raven-turned-man in turn, "do what you will with me, but let the children go. They have nothing to do with this. They don't even know who you are."

Unfortunately for the students, who had been happily ignored just a few moments ago, Alice let out a gasp at the wizards' names. As everyone in the room turned to look at her, James realized that Val's statement was probably not entirely true.

"Do you know them?" he hissed, Alice trembling under the gaze of the two wizards in the front.

"They . . . I don't . . ." she stammered.

"Who are they?" Sirius demanded, exploding with frustration, and his outburst made her jump as the words spilled out of her.

"Ewan and Milo are two of the Righton brothers!" At this, several of the other students gasped and began to buzz as Alice pointed a trembling finger across the room. "Professor Val arrested their brother Grimean at the beginning of the year, don't you remember? They must want revenge! I think—I think that they're going to kill her!"

Mouths agape, the others all turned to Professor Val and the two brothers, all of whom were still staring their way. When the students fell silent again, Milo turned a sickly grin on Val.

"It seems that the chubby-faced girl is smarter than she looks," he pointed out, and Alice buried her face in her hands. Turning to his brother, he asked, "What do you say we give them a little history lesson? Might do them some good to know the true nature of their professor here."

"I'm not waiting," Ewan objected gruffly, taking out his wand. "I've spent the last year trying to find this little rat, and I don't have time to worry about a bunch of schoolchildren." Raising his wand, he hovered its tip above Professor Val's chest while Milo shrugged and did the same.

"No!" Lily cried, and Ewan snapped his head back.

"Quiet down, or you'll be next!" he commanded, and the other girls pressed their backs against the wall. "Scream one more time, and we'll make sure you never will again!"

As he faced the other way, James felt a cry of surprise escape him as he recognized the movement of Ewan's head. "Wait, you're that man from the Three Broomsticks!" he exclaimed, and the Rightons looked back at him without comment. "You were talking with Bucklot outside of the inn! I only saw you for a second, but I'm sure it was you!"

Narrowing his eyes, Ewan studied James carefully while his mouth twitched. "I don't remember frequenting the Three Broomsticks, but you seem to have a clear memory of it."

A sudden smile curling his lips, Milo tilted his head and stepped closer to James. "Now that I think about it, something seems familiar about this one—weren't you outside the boarded-up shop in Hogsmeade?"

Glancing quickly at Sirius, James looked back. "How did you know that?"

"I was watching from the roof," he answered smugly, and James suddenly understood.

"You're an Animagus?" he asked, and despite the seriousness of the situation, a few of the students glared at him.

"He flew in the room as a bloody bird, James," Remus said, and Lily rolled her eyes before Hillary spoke up.

"Were you at the Quidditch Game, then?" she asked Milo.

"Bright, this class," Milo commented, grinning over at Professor Val again. "Right again. I was able to round up a few friends to act as my eyes, but we still couldn't find Cleary," he added with a frown.

"I didn't attend that day," Val explained, shifting slightly while keeping her eyes on Milo, "and I can't say that I regret my decision. But that would explain why we haven't been able to catch you yet—you were an Unregistered Animagus."

"It took me several years before I perfected that little trick," he bragged, "and it's certainly come in handy quite a few times. One can hop right past an Auror and not even draw a second glance."

"I always thought that there was something funny about your cases," Val responded. "For someone so quick to action, we should have nabbed you years ago."

"Ewan was always the patient one," Milo agreed. "And Grimean—well, Grimean could power through any fix. I never thought that he would fall prey to someone as ordinary as you," he scoffed, launching a gob of saliva onto the ground.

"I thought that you didn't get along with your brother," Alice piped up again, seemingly unable to stop herself even through the hands pressed over her mouth. "Didn't you go your separate ways after raiding Greenock ten years ago?"

" _Didn't get along?_ " Milo repeated incredulously, and a few students flinched at the sudden ferocity of his voice. "Don't tell me you believe everything the Ministry feeds you! Sure, we've had our disagreements, but he was family! No one is going to waste time when his brother's freedom is on the line!" he spat at Professor Val, baring his yellow teeth. "Once you messed with Grimean, you messed with all of us!"

Although Milo's beady eyes blazed with light, James noticed that Ewan remained standing impassively beside him, frowning slightly. Seeming to lose his patience, Ewan made a motion as if to lift his wand-arm, but Lily cut him off bravely. "Do you know how dangerous it is coming here?" she demanded. "Headmaster Dumbledore and a dozen other professors are just a call away. It wouldn't take much to bring them running in here."

"We're not nearly that daft," Ewan answered her with narrowed eyes. "We had long enough to think through a course of action while we were sitting around Hogsmeade."

"Why were you staying in Hogsmeade, anyway?" Sirius questioned. "Wouldn't someone have recognized you?"

"We weren't there very long," Milo replied. "Besides, when you're in our line of work, you get used to hiding."

"That's enough!" Ewan interrupted, shooting a glare at his brother. "We didn't come here to talk!"

"Please, I'm asking you to let the class go!" Professor Val spoke up when it became clear that Ewan would not be stalled any longer. "It'll take them at least ten minutes before they can alert the staff and make it back here. You'll be long gone by then!"

"Oh, I'm not planning on leaving in ten minutes," Milo sneered, raising his wand. "There's no way I'm letting a handful of kids get in the way of having a bit of fun. What do you say, Ewan?" Not waiting for his brother to respond, Milo smiled at Val and parted his lips in a pant. "After all, it'll be educational—the class will get to see how long it takes before you break. Who knows? Maybe you'll last longer than Grace."

Freezing, Val slowly clenched her fists. "What?" she hissed.

"Oh, come on now, how did you think we got wind of your location?" he prodded with a grin. "Only a few of the Aurors' inner circle knew where you were, but it was only a matter of planning your takedown after finding Grace. It turns out that Aurors aren't impossible to get information out of, after all."

Gritting her teeth, Val glared at him with blazing eyes. "He would never tell you anything!"

"Well, you're wrong about that," Milo disagreed, shrugging with a wide smile. "Tell me Cleary, would you like to hear how he screamed for his life when we treated him like you did our brother?"

Looking the angriest James had ever seen her, Val made a violent twitching movement with her hands and feet. For a moment, he thought that she would jump up and tackle Milo to the ground, but she remained rooted to the floor, her face a furious shade of red as she seethed in place.

"Stop provoking her," Ewan reprimanded his brother, spinning his wand in his hand. "Let's get this done with."

"Only if I can have a bit of fun," Milo argued, trembling with anticipation. "I've waited too long for this for it to end so quickly."

"The longer we stay, the more difficult it will be to get out," Ewan reminded him. "Not both of us have the privilege of flight, you know."

"You can get a head start if you're so worried," Milo huffed over his shoulder. "If you want, you can place a Silencing Charm on her so that the rest of the castle doesn't hear her screams. For Merlin's sake, just watch the kids, Ewan," he added, shaking his head with a sneer as he raised his wand.

"No!" Lily yelled as the other girls let out short screams.

" _Crucio!_ " Milo cried, disregarding her completely. Nothing so much as a spark came out of his wand-tip, but Professor Val instantly crumpled, hitting the floor with a scream and jerking wildly about. Her arms and legs began to flail at random, and her face twisted in an agonizing picture of pain as she became oblivious to the frantic hooting of the caged animals behind her. Rendered completely helpless, she knocked against the caged owls by her desk and caused them to crash down on top of her; she paid the metal cages no attention as they thundered downward, one of the larger ones striking her on the temple and drawing a large spot of blood.

Milo crowed with delight as she writhed, and his laughs almost matched the volume of her screams. Horrified, the students reacted almost as abruptly as Professor Val, either moving forward or taking a few steps back uncertainly. Seeing their professor twisting painfully on the floor caused something inside James to snap; before he knew what he was doing, he had already lunged to the floor and reached for his wand. At the sound of the desks knocking into him, the other students stopped moving and watched James as he snatched his wand from the ground. An instant later, Sirius jumped after his friend as James stood, pointing his wand at Ewan as he turned towards the commotion.

" _Flipendo!_ "

Flying backwards, Ewan performed a mid-air backflip and crashed into Milo before they both slammed into the back wall. By this time, the rest of the students had scrambled for their wands as well, and the Righton brothers let out cries of rage as they rose from the ground. Recovering remarkably quickly, Professor Val pushed rolled to her feet, producing a second wand out of nowhere and pointing it at Ewan a bit too late. Having already risen to his feet, he sent a counter-spell flashing back at her, and a blinding flash of green and gold collided in midair.

While Val and Ewan dueled, Milo struggled to his feet outside of their line of fire only to come face-to-face with a group of armed students. Holding his wand aloft, James shouted an incantation while the others did the same, showering flashes of light at Milo. Giving a violent flick of his wrist, he conjured a shining shield of blue light that dissolved most of the spells, sending the others ricocheting back to the casters. As Remus, Lily, and Alice dropped to the floor to avoid the rebounding spells, Milo gave another swish of his wand, beating the others to the draw.

" _Depulso!_ " he shouted, and the students ran for cover as the rows of desks flipped backwards toward them, knocking over Peter and most of the others. Only James and Sirius remained standing, and they quickly shot two more spells at Milo only to have him use the translucent shield again.

" _Stupefy!_ " Milo roared, and James and Sirius dove to the side to avoid the Stunning Spell, landing on the floor hard enough to knock the breath out of them. As the others began to recover, Milo flicked his wand and caused the upturned desks to perform another round of aerial backflips, crashing on top of the students as they covered their heads. Pacing towards them, Milo pointed his wand at Lily and Alice as they again tried to stand, sending their wands flying from their hands.

" _Immobulus!_ " he commanded, and the girls froze in place as the others watched them from the ground. Still preoccupied with Ewan, Professor Val could do nothing to help, and the students stared fearfully up at Milo as he laughed at them.

"Fighting is useless! You couldn't last a minute in a duel with the Righton brothers! Just give it up before any of you—"

Cutting him off, James jumped to his feet and tossed his Sneakoscope at Milo. "Catch!"

Falling silent again, Milo grabbed the whirring top, and James used the opportunity to point his wand at Mussmug's cage where it was lying on the floor next to him. " _Alohomora!_ "

Instantly, the cage door swung open, and Mussmug cowered fearfully in the back. Knowing that there was no time to lose, James grabbed the kitten by the scruff of her neck and threw her at Milo with full force. Still holding the Sneakoscope, Milo did not have time to react as Mussmug landed on his face, hissing and clawing ferociously while he dropped his wand and tried to throw her off. Turning to Hardwin's cage, James opened his while the other students caught on, using the Unlocking Charm on the cages scattering the room. When Milo finally threw Mussmug from his shoulders, a barrage of Kneazles and owls swarmed towards him in an angry mob, and his eyes bulged at the sight of the snarling animals. Turning around, he quickly morphed into the form of a raven and fled from the snapping stampede.

Jumping to their feet, James and the other students ran to help Professor Val in her fight against Ewan, Remus and Hillary pausing briefly to unfreeze Lily and Alice. Both Val and Ewan had started to show signs of fatigue, marked by the gleaming beads of perspiration sliding down their faces as they continued to counter each other's curses. As Milo cawed behind the students, Sirius raised his wand and pointed it at Ewan.

" _Stupefy!_ " he shouted, and Ewan, too involved in his duel to notice the students running towards him, flew backwards and hit the wall while Val dissolved his most recent jinx.

Turning towards her class in the temporary lull, Val asked, "Where's Milo?"

"Back there," James answered, pointing towards the Animagus as he dodged Hardwin's talons and squawked loudly. Nodding, Professor Val carefully aimed her wand at the swarm of moving animals and concentrated for a moment.

" _Incarcerous!_ " she finally shouted, and the owls chasing Milo swooped away as a writhing rope shot out of her wand-tip and wrapped around the raven, sending Milo to the ground with his wings pinned to his sides. Satisfied, Val and the others turned around again to face Ewan, but they were shocked to find him not lying against the wall, but standing on his feet in front of them with a murderous look.

" _Depulso!_ " he shouted, and James felt his feet leave the ground as he and the others flew backwards onto the overturned desks near the back of the room. James' head hit one of the chairs with a thud, and he let go of his wand while Ewan approached, holding his throbbing skull. Most of the other students seemed to have dropped their weapons as well, and Professor Val had fared no better.

"But . . . how?" she asked Ewan in a raspy voice, gasping for breath as she struggled to a sitting position. "That spell should have knocked you out for a few minutes at the very least!"

"If you think that I'm going to waste time explaining, you're mistaken," Ewan growled as he stalked up to her, his knuckles turning white as he clutched his wand. "I've seen and learned things during the last year that you couldn't begin to imagine—confound it, that _I_ couldn't even have imagined before now! But I'll tell you why I'm here. Do you really think that I came back to avenge that pathetic excuse of a brother just when I thought I'd seen the last of him? No, I did it for _him_. It's high time that the Aurors came to an end, and the Dark Lord knew there could be no exceptions. Milo and I were simply chosen to find you after our familial ties, and, I admit, Milo's overt enthusiasm. Do you think that anyone will be able to hide from the Dark Lord's power?" Sneering, he glared down at Professor Val. "I guess you know the truth now. If I can only destroy the Auror Department one witch at a time, I'll still do it. And it starts with you today."

Raising his wand over his head as the students flinched away, Ewan opened his mouth to yell an incantation, but the door to the room suddenly blasted off its hinges. Shocked, James spotted Professor Flannegin in the doorway, wand in hand and looking just about as surprised as the others in the room. Then, seeming to take in the situation, he lifted his arm and pointed his wand at Ewan.

" _Everte Statum!_ "

Somersaulting backwards, Ewan hit the wall with a grunt, and Flannegin entered hurriedly when he saw Professor Val and the students lined in front of the Death Eater. As he paced over to them, Ewan started to rise with a vicious growl, but Flannegin merely gave him a sideways look and flicked his wand again.

" _Confundo!_ " he said, and Ewan sat back against the wall with a perplexed expression. Muttering indistinctly to himself, he ignored Flannegin and began biting his fingernails while Professor Val and the students stood.

"Who—what happened in here?" Professor Flannegin asked, staring wide-eyed at the overturned desks.

"Ewan and Milo Righton tracked me to Hogwarts," Val explained, pointing to the incapacitated raven when Flannegin gave her an odd look. "They're the ones who found Obadiah, and they tried to take me down next. Thanks to the you and the class, however, they're quite harmless now."

Mouth hanging open, Flannegin stared at Milo as he gave an unhappy squawk, carefully watched over by Mussmug and a couple of the Kneazles.

"But why are you here?" Val asked him, frowning slightly. "You know I'm supposed to be giving an exam, right? You couldn't have overheard the dueling all the way from your classroom."

"Were we late for our Arithmancy exam, Professor?" Lily questioned.

Flushing, Flannegin glanced at the floor and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Er, not exactly," he muttered, addressing Val sheepishly. "You see, as I was getting ready for the final exam, I realized that it would be the fourteenth for this class, which meant that the thirteenth falls with you. It's very unlucky, see, and all the other signs were pointing against it—it was your House, after all, and—"

Still breathing heavily, Professor Val took a step towards him. "You mean to say that you ran all the way up here and broke down the door just because my exam fell on an unlucky number?"

Growing even redder, Professor Flannegin scuffed his shoe on the floor and started to stammer a reply, but Val suddenly rushed forward to give him a passionate kiss. Eyes widening, Flannegin drew back before giving in, wrapping his arms around her.

After a few moments, the sound of heavy footsteps came running towards the classroom, and the students turned towards the entrance just as Headmaster Dumbledore appeared, followed closely by Professor McGonagall and, surprisingly, Abraham Grayson. Eyeing the disastrous state of the room, Dumbledore and McGonagall looked on in amazement as Grayson stepped in front of them and pointed at Ewan.

"Right there, Dumbledore, sir," the large wizard announced as James and his roommates stared at him with open mouths.

"What's he doing here?" Sirius asked Dumbledore, pointing at Grayson with narrowed eyes. Blinking, the Headmaster peered over his half-moon spectacles at Sirius as Val and Flannegin broke apart, flushing under Professor McGonagall's gaze.

"Are you acquainted?" Dumbledore inquired of Sirius, his voice lifting at the end of his sentence.

"He's Abraham Grayson—he's the one who bought Dogweed and Deathcap down in Hogsmeade," James supplied, also giving Grayson a hard look.

Eyes shining as if amused, Dumbledore shook his head while Grayson stared back at the boys blankly. "Admirable though your detective work may be, you along with everyone else were fooled by his cover story. You have yet to properly meet Aidan Gaffe, a highly-trained Auror who was hired to watch our dear Valerie at the start of the school year due to the risks of her employment. As of right now, I'm afraid that his brief venture into the business world ended rather abruptly."

"Did you know about this?" Sirius demanded of Professor Val, who nodded, still red.

"Albus requested that the Ministry assign him to me as soon as I accepted the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor," she explained.

"You hired an Auror to protect other another Auror?" Remus asked Dumbledore.

"It was a decision that the Minister was none too pleased with," he answered, "but we pulled it off nonetheless. Thanks to Gaffe, we were able to dig crucial information out of his sales-partner regarding the Rightons, though I'm afraid it was a bit too late," he added, glancing at Val as Gaffe moved forward to magically bind Ewan.

"His brother is here, too," Val told Gaffe, pointing at the raven still lying on the floor. "Milo is an Animagus."

Nodding, Gaffe made to pick up Milo while Hardwin and Mussmug stood off to the side with smug expressions. Squirming angrily in the breadth of Gaffe's hand, Milo tried to peck his captor, but he was soon punished by a rap on his beak from the Auror.

"I suppose that's all, then," McGonagall stated as Gaffe lifted Ewan into the air with his wand. "We'll find these two a neighboring cell with their brother once we report this to the Wizengamot."

"There's another thing you should know," Professor Val spoke up before Dumbledore and the others could leave. "The Rightons joined the Death Eaters, which isn't surprising in itself, but they were tasked with finding me. The whole of the Auror Department is being targeted by Lord Voldemort. He'll want to tear down the opposition by force—and he's already started," she added, breaking off and glancing at the floor.

"Grace, you mean," Dumbledore guessed, his blue eyes staring through her. "I'll make sure that the Wizengamot knows the full extent of the Rightons' crimes. As for now, let's be off. I believe we have a few matters to take care of."

As he, McGonagall, and Gaffe turned to leave, Professor Flannegin stepped forward and held out a hand. "Albus, Minerva—I apologize for the . . . compromising situation you found us in when you arrived. It was entirely unprofessional, and—"

Spinning around, McGonagall gave him and Professor Val a steely look. "Are you seriously suggesting that you owe an apology? It's about time you two made up—I would sooner retire my position of Deputy Headmistress than spend another day around your perpetual moping."

Silenced, Flannegin grew even redder while Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "We won't disturb you any longer, then," the Headmaster said, turning with his hands clasped behind him.

In a few strides, he had exited the classroom with McGonagall and Gaffe, who gently levitated Ewan out of the premises. Turning to each other again, Val and Flannegin stood blushing until the latter offered a sort of half-shrug and caught Val in his arms again. Their lips met, knocking Flannegin's glasses askew as several of the girls started giggling.

"Pardon me, sir," Remus piped up after James exchanged a grimace with his roommates. "Shouldn't we take our Arithmancy exam now?"

Cracking open a single eye, Flannegin parted from Val long enough to spit out, "The exam is canceled," before returning to more pressing matters.


	16. The Final Feast

**The Final Feast**

At the end-of-term feast later that night, Dumbledore stood from his place at the High Table and raised his glass for a toast. As Sirius gave him a shove, James turned away from the other Houses' tables spanning the Great Hall, each of them nearly emptied of their generous helpings of roast duck and scalloped potatoes. Illuminated by the starlight from the ceiling, Dumbledore's twinkling eyes and spectacles mimicked the flashing goblets on the tables before him.

"I would like to end this delightful evening with two very important announcements," he said as the room fell into rapt attention. "However, before I begin, I must provide a special thank-you to our Ministry's Auror Department, who stepped in tonight with valuable efficiency and commitment to safety."

Raising his glass towards the row of Auror operatives lining the back of the hall, Dumbledore instigated a round of applause from the students; after the Rightons' capture, several teams of Aurors had arrived and marched up and down the castle, cleaning up the damage and escorting the Death Eaters outside the grounds. Among those who had been invited to the final feast, Gaffe nodded in acknowledgement before meeting James' eyes from across the room. Raising his arms into the air, James mimicked the flapping of wings, and Gaffe nodded before patting his wand and giving another long puff on his cigar.

After waiting for the applause to die down, Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Unfortunately, in light of the recent events, I have a saddening announcement to make. Professor Cleary can no longer remain on the Hogwarts staff after tonight." Giving groans, the students started shouting objections as Professor Val nodded from the High Table, James and some of the other Gryffindors even rising to their feet.

"That's rubbish!" Sirius exclaimed, pounding his fist on the table amid the noise. "What's she got to leave for?"

"She can't just go!" Alice cried.

"To be fair," Lily consoled, "I suppose it's much too dangerous for her to stay after—"

"The secrecy of her employment has finally become too overwhelming to maintain," Dumbledore explained, quieting the dissenters. "As of next term, we hope to find another candidate for the position, although we can no longer rely on the Auror Department."

"That's what I was saying," Lily told Alice.

"What a load of codswallop!" Sirius argued. "We just fought off two Death Eaters—who's to say we can't do it again?"

"Weren't you against her at the start of the year?" Remus pointed out.

"A lot's changed since then, hasn't it?" Sirius retorted, sitting down in a huff. "It's an absolute outrage—she's just as good as Alamanzar was!"

"Joining her in retirement will be our Arithmancy professor, Eadward Flannegin," Dumbledore continued, to another round of surprised murmuring from the student body. "As treasured as his employment has been, he has explained to me that his personal life has become a bit lacking in terms of fulfillment. We wish him the very best in the next chapter of his life."

Watching Professor Flannegin from across the Great Hall, James thought he saw the spectacled wizard grasp hands with Professor Val under the High Table, but no one else seemed to notice. Slumping in her chair, Alice gave a heavy sigh.

"I suppose it's for the best," she conceded, "but I was hoping that she would stay longer than our last two Defense Against the Dark Arts professors. I was really starting to like her."

"It is also my duty to recognize the heroic actions of Valerie's third-year students," Dumbledore continued, gesturing towards the Gryffindor table. Perking up, Lily, Alice, and Hillary exchanged knowing smiles with James and his roommates. "Without their aid, the Rightons might have succeeded in their devious plot, and we would not have reason to celebrate this night. So, to those of you still wondering about the results of the House Cup, I have awarded an extra 50 points each to the students who helped fight off the Righton brothers."

Whooping, the Gryffindor students rose to their feet and drowned out the congratulatory applause from the Aurors and the other Houses. Turning first to Sirius, James offered high-fives to each of his classmates, receiving hearty reciprocation. Even Lily did not back down when he offered his hand to her, although she rolled her eyes at the enthusiastic gesture.

Half an hour later, James and his roommates joined the stream of students flowing out of the Great Hall, where they drew behind Jorkins and Adah. As they passed by the back of the room, Jorkins gave the Aurors a piercing look before turning to her companion.

"I heard that Dumbledore hired an army of Aurors to watch over the school while Professor Val was here," she informed Adah. "Can you believe he would lie to all of us like that?"

"I thought that most of them came here from the Ministry," Adah countered, frowning.

"That's what _they_ say," Jorkins responded, glaring over her shoulders, "but I'd like to know how they arrived so quickly after the attack."

"They probably used Portkeys," Adah replied.

"And did you hear that the Rightons used one of the Unforgivable Curses?" Jorkins continued on unabashedly, cutting off Adah mid-sigh. "They used the Cruciatus Curse on Professor Val, and someone told me that they were about to pull out the Killing Curse before the Aurors showed up!"

Turning to his roommates, who were already looking at one another with raised eyebrows, James commented, "Well, what do you know about that? She can actually get something right once in a while."

Within a few moments of entering the hallway, James turned his head to the left and spotted the thin form of Barnaby Bucklot exiting from a small door leading to a private office. Walking out behind him, a handful of Aurors looked James' way as he ran up to the saddened businessman, who looked strangely out of place in his bare, black robes. Having started in the other direction, Bucklot did not notice the boys' approach until James called out to him.

"Mr. Bucklot!" James called out, skidding to a stop once the wizard had turned around. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, 'ello," Bucklot greeted, staring at the floor as he brushed the stringy hair out of his eyes. "I was called up from 'Ogsmeade to meet wif the Auror Depar'ment—jus' madders of me business, tha's all."

"Was it because you were making deals with Ewan Righton behind your client's back?" Sirius interrogated, crossing his arms.

Eyes widening, Bucklot snapped to attention. "Wha'? 'Oo told you tha'?"

"We pretty much figured it out on our own," James told him, matching Sirius' stance.

"Well . . . I won't deny it," Bucklot admitted, but he held their gaze with a challenging glint in his eye. "But it wasn't me fault! 'Ow was I supposed to know tha' 'e were a bloomin' Death Eater? An' tha' other fellow didn't even bover to tell me tha' 'e were an Auror, otherwise I would 'ave never talked wif 'im!"

"But you shouldn't have double-crossed him even if he wasn't an Auror," Remus pointed out.

"Tell me this, lads: 'as you ever 'ad to sell somfing?" Bucklot retorted, aiming a finger at them. The more agitated he grew, the harder his accent was to understand. "I thought not! An' I wasn't goin' to ac'ually sell the place to someone else—it were jus' a precaution, it were. But now look where I is! Not only is tha' Righton fellow arrested, but now the Auror says 'e won't go through wif the sale! Wha' if everyone started canceling their promises righ' an' left, eh? The world would come to an end! What is I supposed to do now?"

Gesticulating wildly, he stalked off down the corridor with mumbled complaints. Sharing glances, the others shook their heads and before heading in the other direction to catch up with the rest of the students.

In the morning, James and his roommates packed their suitcases for the journey back from Hogwarts, still exchanging excited congratulations with their fellow Gryffindors regarding the House Cup. Frank and his roommates stopped to chat in the hallway of the Hogwarts Express, enthused by the thrilling stories about the Rightons' failed attempt at revenge. It did not take long for a crowd to form in the corridor, blocking the way for passing students; when the third-year Gryffindor girls arrived a short time later, a fresh storm of questions rose up from the interested parties.

"You didn't really duel Milo, did you?" an amazed first-year interrogated, her eyes almost as wide as her open mouth.

"We did for a while," Alice answered, and the other students buzzed with excitement.

"We weren't able to do much good, though," Lily pointed out. "He was really experienced."

At the crowd's fallen faces, James piped up, "But we eventually beat him, all thanks to this very animal!" Gesturing grandly towards Mussmug's cage, where the frightened ball of fur sat staring back at the admiring crowd, James incited a new round of enthusiastic gasps while Hardwin gave him a nasty look from his cage. "Well, Hardwin helped, too," he admitted as an afterthought.

"Did your cat really fight the Death Eaters?" another student asked Remus in awe. "Can we pet it?"

"Well . . ." Remus contemplated, and he shrugged after a glance at Mussmug. "I don't see why not." Bending down, he reached for the latch on the cage, but Mussmug caught the movement and hissed sharply at him, her fur standing on end as her eyes dilated with a wild expression. Jumping back, Remus gulped. "On second thought, I don't think that's a good idea."

A hand raised from the back of the crowd, and James noticed with distaste that Wilkes, Mulciber, and Avery had joined the gathering. Snape stood just a short distance away with his back against the wall and a dark, envious glower on his face. Making sure that everyone could see his raised hand, Wilkes smirked and piped up, "I heard that Milo wasn't even there. Only Ewan was seen escorted out of the castle. I think that you're just trying to show off."

Now silent, the other students turned to stare at James and his roommates. Scowling, James crossed his arms. "Well, you weren't there, were you? Why would we be lying?"

"All I'm saying is that the evidence points against it," Wilkes answered, raising his hands in a mock conciliatory gesture. "Your story doesn't hold up like it should."

"But Milo _was_ there!" Alice countered, glaring at him. "All of us agree on that!"

"You would have obviously agreed on a story before telling it to the rest of the school," Wilkes accused, making her round face flush.

"She's telling the truth!" Lily snapped in defense of her friend. "You could have asked any one of the Aurors last night to find out the truth!"

"They're not here now, are they?" Avery pointed out with a sly smile. "How convenient of you to point that out now!"

"Milo was a raven at the time—of course you wouldn't have seen him!" Sirius spat back. "He was an Animagus, for Merlin's sake! Who would have noticed a bird being taken away by the Ministry?"

"Now _that_ sounds likely," Wilkes mocked, making his friends snicker. "How is it that as soon as you don't have an answer, you resort to making up stories about Animagi?"

"Just stuff it, why don't you?" Frank told the Slytherins. "If you're jealous, keep it to yourself."

"I believe them!" Dill added.

"Well, of course _you_ believe them!" Wilkes sneered. "You're all Gryffindors!" Erupting with buzzes, the students began to whisper loudly between themselves, and Lily glanced back and forth rapidly.

"You can't believe him!" she protested. "We wouldn't lie about something like this!"

Glancing back and forth, she tried to find a sympathetic ear, but the muttering students only stared back at her with narrowed eyes. When Lily looked at Snape for help, the greasy-haired boy turned his head away and folded his arms against his chest.

Gritting his teeth at Wilkes, James growled, "Did you only come here to stir up trouble? You're just sore that you lost the House Cup to us!"

"Trust me, I have better things to do than poke holes in your tale out of spite," Wilkes retorted. "Your story makes enough trouble for itself without me having to do anything."

"If you have a problem with us, you can take it up with me!" James shot back, reaching for his wand. Alarmed, Remus tried to pull him back, but Sirius shoved him back as he grabbed his own.

"That's not going to prove anything!" Lily reprimanded, now turning her glare on them. "We should just walk away."

"But they're lying!" James replied as the girls looked on with growing fear. "We can't just let them get away with it!"

"I'm ready any time you are, James," Sirius told him, gripping his wand tightly as he stared the Slytherins down. Remus tried to signal Peter to help hold Sirius back, but the latter pressed his back into the wall and shook his head. Before a duel could break out, however, a few students parted at the far end of the hallway, signaling the approach of two professors.

"What's going on?" Professor Val asked, looking over the scene while Professor Flannegin did the same beside her, considerably less at ease with the circumstances. Locking eyes with Val, James and Sirius froze with their wands in their hands, and she shook her head.

"James, Sirius, you shouldn't be using magic outside of Hogwarts," she reproved them lightly, and they slowly lowered their wands. "Now, why is everyone taking up the hallway?"

"Professor Val, did Ewan and Milo really both break into Hogwarts?" one of the students asked, changing the subject.

Although she frowned, Val nodded. "Yes, they both got in during my last exam of the week. Why, is something not clear?"

The tension quickly deflating, the students turned back to glower at Wilkes and his friends, who shrugged with apology. Muttering grumpily, the crowd began to disperse as Alice turned back to Professor Val with a beam.

"Everything's all right!" she told her. Still confused, Val and Flannegin watched bemusedly as the students walked off in opposite directions. Putting his wand away, James thrust out his foot as Snape passed, causing him to stumble.

"Thanks for nothing, Snivellus," he hissed as the Slytherin shot a glare at him. "You couldn't have even been bothered to help out your friend, could you?"

His scowl deepening, Snape averted his gaze and shuffled down the hall as Val and Flannegin stood alone with the third-year Gryffindors. Flannegin's eyes were just a bit wider than usual behind his thick-rimmed glasses, and he turned to peer at the remaining students with a bewildered expression.

"Did we do something wrong?"

"Not at all!" Peter replied, and the others exchanged knowing smiles before Alice turned to Professor Val.

"Do you really have to leave Hogwarts?" she inquired, and Val smiled sadly before leaning down.

"I'm afraid that it can't be helped," she answered. "I really hate to leave, especially after growing so attached to all of you over the last year. You've grown a lot, and I daresay that a few of you even have a future in the Auror Department if you so desire." Brightening, they all beamed as she shook her head. "Unfortunately, my retirement also has to do with the state of the Ministry. I would be willing to stay if it was merely a matter of my personal safety, but the Auror Department needs me. I can't leave my colleagues hanging. You can understand that, can't you?"

Although they glanced down, the students all nodded as Professor Flannegin sniffed. "I can see that none of you will be missing me," he commented, and they all looked up again only to meet a smile creeping across his face. "Just keep working on your Arithmancy equations for me, all right?" he requested, and they all nodded hurriedly.

"I wish you the best," Val told them, straightening again with a flash of her brilliant smile. "I hope that this won't be the last time we see each other."

Allowing the professors to pass, James and the others waved goodbye. Once they had left, James faced the others and grinned. "A future in the Auror Department, eh? What do you know about that? Would any of you fancy working there?"

"I don't know about that," Remus replied, glancing after Professor Val. "After the whole affair yesterday, I could stand without any more excitement for the next few months."

"I don't know," Alice disagreed, tilting her round face thoughtfully. "I think it might be kind of exciting being an Auror!"

"Exciting?" Peter asked, his nose wrinkling. "You call being attacked exciting?"

"Wasn't it?" Sirius reminisced.

"Well, I never want to do that again!" Peter announced, shuddering.

"I'm not sure I like the idea of fighting Dark wizards every day," Lily said. "After yesterday, I never want to see another raven! Who knew that Animagi could be so creepy?"

"What, Professor McGonagall isn't frightening enough?" James joked, but he shared a meaningful glance with Sirius and Peter as the others laughed.

"I guess that we all have our work cut out for us," Sirius said, and everyone nodded, the others apparently thinking that he was talking about Professor Val's final words to them. A smile curling the corner of his lips, James put his hands on his hips as the girls took their leave.

"Well, there's no time like the present!" he announced. Putting his arm around Remus and Peter in turn, he shared a wink with Sirius on their way to an empty compartment.

* * *

 _Thank you so much for reading!_ _I love to read your comments, and it makes me happy to see so many people interested in my writing._ _If you want to continue the story, the next book is_ James Potter and the Animagus Potion _._


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